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THE PSYCHOLOGY AND 
PEDAGOGY OF ANGER 



COPYRIGHT, 1918 

BY 

WARWICK * YORK. Inc. 



FEB 15 



t&ucatuntal ^Bgctiologg Mmtograplis 

This volume, which is number 19 in the 
series, was edited by J. Carleton Bell 



THE PSYCHOLOGY AND 
PEDAGOGY OF ANGER 



By 
ROY FRANKLIN RICHARDSON 

Professor of Education, University of Maine 




BALTIMORE 

WARWICK & YORK, Inc. 

19 18 



< 



*f# 



nSFERRED P*Ott 

\mi oFnte 
mi n ww 



CONTENTS 

Preface 

Introduction 



CHAPTER ONE 

Mental Situation Stimulating Anger. . n 

CHAPTER two 
Behavior of Consciousness 31 

chapter THREE 
Disappearance of Anger 53 

CHAPTER FOUR 

Educational Function 83 

Bibliography 99 

Index 103 



PREFACE 

The importance of the study of the emotions in relation to 
human conduct is well understood. Just how consciousness 
behaves under the influence of the fundamental human emo- 
tions like fear and anger, is one of vital interest to the 
psychologist and educator. It has always been difficult to 
study the structural side of our emotions because of an ina- 
bility to control voluntarily our emotions for purposes 
of introspection. The structure of emotions is primarily im- 
portant in so far as structure may allow an interpretation of 
function. The study of the emotions has for the most part 
been limited to theoretical discussions based on the observa- 
tions of normal and abnormal persons and on the casual in- 
trospection of individual authors. ^This work is an attempt 
to study systematically the emotion of anger in relation to 
the behavior of consciousness, the ideas and feelings asso- 
ciated in the development of anger, the reactive side of con- 
sciousness under the influence of anger, individual differ- 
ences in behavior, manner of the disappearance and diminu- 
tion of anger, devices used in the control and facilitation of 
the emotion, and the conscious after-effects including the 
inter-relation of anger and other feelings, emotions and atti- 
tudes which follow. The education of the emotions was 
first voiced by Aristotle who indicated that one of the aims 
of education should be to teach men to be angry aright. 

The author is under great obligations to President G. 
Stanley Hall, for without his inspiration the investigation 
would never have been begun or completed. A number of 
persons cooperated in the study both by criticism and ob- 
servation of emotional experiences. The study would not 
have been possible without the kindly cooperation of the 
following: Professor and Mrs. G. E. Freeland, Mr. A. E. 
Hamilton, Dr. G. E. Jones, Dr. George Bivin, Dr. Frank E. 
Howard, Dr. W. T. Sangor, Dr. K. K. Robinson, Mr. D. I. 
Pope, Mrs. R. F. Richardson, Dr. E. O. Finkenbinder, Dr. 
Raymond Bellamy. R. F. R. 

University of Maine 
June 20, 191 7 



INTRODUCTION 

Although the emotions are recognized as among the most 
important mental phenomena, exerting a marked influence 
on other mental processes, they have had comparatively lit- 
tle systematic investigation. We have our casual descrip- 
tions of emotions in terms of feelings, sensations and phy- 
siological effects. We have our theories, accounting for the 
expression of the emotions, and our theories of the constitu- 
ents of the emotive consciousness. The functional side of 
emotions, emphasizing the behavior of consciousness, has 
been for the most part neglected. In looking over the liter- 
ature on emotions, one is impressed by its theoretical and 
opinionated trend. Much of it is based on casual individual 
observations. Attention has for the most part been directed 
to the most intense emotional experiences, neglecting the 
smaller emotions, important as they are in the behavior of 
consciousness. Then psychology has concerned itself with 
the exciting period of the emotion, disregarding the consci- 
ousness preceding the emotion and that after the emotion 
has disappeared. From the functional aspect of emotions/ 
some of the questions which invite study are as follows: i. 
the mental situation, including the fore-period from which 
the emotion develops ; 2. the behavior of consciousness dur- 
ing the period the emotion exists; 3. the manner of disap- 
pearance and diminution of the emotion; 4. the effect in 
consciousness after the emotion has disappeared; 5. individ- 
ual differences in emotional life. 

The statement of W r undt (21) and Kiilpe (14) concern- 
ing voluntary action, that its mere period of duration is but 
a small part of its psychological significance, may well be 
said of emotions. Wundt suggests the close relation be- 
tween the emotion and volitional action. A volitional pro- 
cess that passes into an external act, he defines as an emo- 

5 




6 PSYCHOLOGY AND PEDAGOGY OF ANGER 

tion which closes with a "pantomimetic" movement. Ach 
(i), in his experiments with the will, distinguishes in each 
experiment a fore, mid and after period. In our emotional 
experiences, it is true to a marked degree that we are pre- 
disposed and predetermined to a specific emotional excite- 
ment by temporary or permanent dispositions and attitudes. 

METHODS. The method in the present study has been 
to observe anger introspectively as it appears in every-day 
life. Ten graduate students of Clark University and two 
persons outside of the University volunteered to observe 
their emotions for a period of at least three months and 
report to the writer each day from the notes of their intro- 
spections. These persons were asked to observe all in- 
stances of anger and fear no matter how minute. Only 
anger will be used in the present study. They were asked 
to observe the conscious fore-period before the emotion be- 
gins, the development of the emotion, the disappearance, the 
diminution and the consciousness after the emotion has dis- 
appeared, which is recognized as having been influenced by 
the emotion. 

Historically, three methods have been used in studying 
the emotions. Casual individual introspection is the earliest 
and is consequently the basis for most of the literature. 
Bain (2) and Ribot (16) were among the first to employ 
this method extensively. Observations of the behavior of 
normal and abnormal persons have given some results. The 
questionaire method used by Dr. Hall (11) rias shown the 
wide range of objective reactions and objects of anger. 

Both anger and fear are deep rooted psychic strata. In- 
trospections reveal motives of selfish, unsocial and unlaw- 
ful character, springing from a level lower than the social 
man. All observers have been quite frank in giving the full 
introspections, even when their most private and personal 
matters were concerned. Where illustrative material is 
used, it has been necessary to remove the personal element, 



INTRODUCTION 7 

as in many instances, others besides the observer were con- 
cerned. This revision has been the work of the writer. The 
essential psychological factor is unchanged and the words 
of the observers are used as nearly as possible. The twelve 
persons will be called by the first twelve letters of the al- 
phabet, and other persons named in the introspections will 
be called X. Y. and Z. Ten of the observers were graduate 
men students of psychology. Seven of these had had con- 
siderable experience in introspection under controlled lab- 
oratory conditions. Most of the illustrative data will be 
taken from the observations of A. B. C. D. E. F. and G. who 
are the most experienced observers. 

No apology is offered for this study because of the uncon- 
trolled conditions of introspection. Emotions are involun- 
tary processes and consequently do not lend themselves to 
voluntary control necessary for laboratory technique. The 
emotion springs from an antecedent complex combined with 
a present idea. The fact that anger does not develop from 
a single experience but is a predetermined consciousness 
usually cumulative in character, makes voluntary origin dif- 
ficult. Even when the individual is aware of the antecedent 
which tends to give rise to anger, the voluntary combination 
with a present idea is unsuccessful. A further difficulty in 
introspection is the tendency of the emotion to disappear as 
a result of the act of introspection. It occurs frequently in 
the data that a further development of the emotion is entire- 
ly cut off by introspection. However, attention to the situ- 
ation giving rise to anger frequently reinstates the emotion, 
if the feeling background is intense enough. It was neces- 
sary to instruct the observers to allow their emotions to run 
their usual course and note the facts of behavior at con- 
venient times. The purpose of this study is to investigate 
the behavior of consciousness in the development, expres- 
sion and disappearance of anger. The observers were asked 
to direct their observation especially to the behavior side of 



8 PSYCHOLOGY AND PEDAGOGY OP ANGER 

consciousness. It is believed, that regardless of the neces- 
sary uncontrolled conditions of introspection, that a syste- 
matic observation of both mild and intense experiences of 
anger by a number of observers over an extended period of 
time will add to a better comprehension of the functional 
character of this one of the fundamental emotions. 



MENTAL SITUATION STIMULATING 
ANGER 



CHAPTER ONE 

MENTAL SITUATION STIMULATING ANGER 
Professor Titchener (19) states concerning emotions in 
general three essential factors for their formation. First, a 
series of ideas shall be interrupted by a vivid feeling; sec- 
ond, the feeling shall mirror a situation or incident in the 
outside world ; and third, the feeling shall be enriched by 
organic sensations created by the course of bodily adjust- 
ment to the situation. It has been well agreed from casual 
introspection that the stimulus to an emotion is a total 
mental situation or predicament. It is evidently necessary 
in the psychology of the emotions that each emotion should 
be studied in connection with its predetermining mental sit- 
uation giving rise to it. Anger because of its slowness to 
develop, lends itself more readily to a study of the situa- 
tion from which it arises, than some other emotions. 

It is well known that there is little constancy in the out- 
side situation, associated with the emotion of anger. What 
one will take as an insult, another will regard as a joke. 
With the same individual, what will at one time excite 
anger, will at another be scarcely noticed. We commonly 
say, referring to some incident, "There was nothing for him 
to be angry about," and the statement may be correct if the 
outside situation is viewed as the stimulus to the emotion. 
With the insane and hysterical, an observer is often baffled 
by the apparently harmless idea that will excite anger. The 
fact is, the situation stimulating anger is a psychic one. We 
fail in viewing our emotional life in the same manner as we 
do in observing our sensations. Whatever the outside condi- 
tions, it is the psychic situation as only a partial reflection of 
outside conditions, that is of primary importance. A few 
instances of the current views of the situation exciting 
anger may be given. W r hat may be called a genetic view is 
illustrated in McDougall's (5) statement, "The condition 

11 



12 PSYCHOLOGY AND PEDAGOGY OF ANGER 

of its (anger) excitement is rather any opposition to the 
free exercise of any impulse, any obstruction to the activity 
to which the creature is impelled by any one of the other 
instincts." Dewey (6) in his conception of instincts has 
pointed out that we are not angry when we are fighting suc- 
cessfully. Only when the pugnacious instinct is impeded 
does emotion arise. An introspective view may be taken 
from Bain (2), "When we have suffered harm at the hands 
of another, it leaves a sting in the violation of the sanctity 
of our feelings. This pre-supposes a sentiment of self re- 
garding pride, the presence of which gives rise to the best 
developed form of anger." David Irons (12), who did some 
keen work in the analysis of the emotions, does not qualify 
his statement that anger appears only when we feel that we 
have been injured. 

From the pathological side, Fere (7) and Magnan (11) 
have described slow accumulation of anger in paranoiacs, 
which seems to reenforce the casual introspective view 
stated above. These insane persons first believe they are 
persecuted. They suspect all about them. Even their very 
best friends are trying to injure their business or reputa- 
tion. Gradually reactionary impulses begin and they them- 
selves become the persecutors and concern themselves with 
the business of revenge. They find gratification in every 
sort of angry outburst, — insult, abuse, threat, murderous 
attack, irony, witticism, etc. 

The same view has been advanced by Steinmetz (18) in 
the observation of the behavior of primitive people. He 
holds that revenge is essentially rooted in the feeling of 
power and superiority. It arises upon the experience of 
injury and its aim is to enhance self- feeling, which has been 
lowered by the injury suffered. 

The next few pages will be devoted to an examination of 
the mental situations from which anger develops as found in 
the results of the introspections. About six hundred intro- 



MENTAL SITUATION STIMULATING ANGER 13 

spections from the various observers have been used for this 
study. 

Feelings of Irritation. One of the characteristic mental 
situations from which anger arises is that connected with 
feelings of irritation. These feelings are described as un- 
pleasant nervous tension with a tendency to motor activity. 
Awareness of the feeling may be present while attention is 
directed elsewhere. It may or may not be referred to any 
particular incident. C. — "It is a sort of diffused unpleasant 
consciousness that things in general are going wrong." 

Irritation in connection with pain or illness is a condition 
from which anger may develop. From this a trivial inci- 
dent may give rise to anger. A note from E's records 
says*, "I had a severe headache to-day and felt irritable. 
When X. would try to sympathize with me, the irritation 
would increase and I tended to be angry." G, who has rel- 
atively few emotions of anger, introspected upon ten cases 
of anger, arising from a fore-period of irritation during a 
day's illness. Subject I. states with reference to pain, 
"While the pain was on I felt as though I wanted to be 
angry at somebody or something, X. spoke to me and at 
once I was angry." Feelings of irritation may increase, 
gradually, accompanying the increased intensity of pain. 
A. states, "Irritableness at the first beginning of the pain 
increased to intense anger at the moment the pain was most 
•severe. There was a strong motor tension in the hands and 
face muscles with the impulse to look about, vaguely aware 
that I was trying to find something to refer the anger to 
A decrease of the pain was accompanied by a de- 
crease of the anger to a feeling of irritation again." 

Feelings of irritation follow as a result of the thwarting 
of some desire or mental attitude and are consequently pre- 
determined by the attitude of the moment. From this, 
anger develops for the most part, as a result of a series of 
stimuli, which have a cumulative effect. Each thwarting 



14 PSYCHOLOGY AND PEDAGOGY OP ANGER 

of the impulse intensifies the irritation until anger is devel- 
oped. One or two failures may stimulate unpleasant feel- 
ings, which at the time are ignored ; but with an increase of 
the number of stimuli, there is an accumulative effect in 
which the awareness of the previous failures becomes more 
intense than at the moment when they occurred. The fol- 
lowing from B.'s observations will illustrate, "I was writing 
a letter to an important personage and was making special 
effort to write it neatly. I made an error and felt unpleas- 
antly irritated. Still feeling quite unpleasant, I turned to 
look for my eraser and could not find it. I looked in sev- 
eral places. Each failure was followed by a sudden in- 
crease in intensity of unpleasant feelings." Finally B. found 
himself using defamatory language prolifically, giving ex- 
pression to a rather well developed case of anger. One is 
usually aware in anger of this type, that the emotion is the 
cumulative effect of a number of previous stimuli. It ap- 
pears from the reports, that if the mental predisposition is 
intense enough, one or two failures may suffice to excite 
anger. In general the stronger the predisposition, the less 
number of failures is required before anger is fully devel- 
oped. 

Another characteristic of the feeling of irritation is its 
indefinite objective reference. It may not refer definitely 
to any object at first. The tendency is usually present to 
refer it to some object or person, regardless of the real cause 
of the feeling. E. states, "I felt I wanted to get angry at 
somebody or something and I did not care much what." 
While it is common with all the persons studied, to be irri- 
tated and burst out angrily at objects, the tendency to trans- 
fer the anger from objects which may be the real objective 
cause to unoffending persons, is a matter in which there is 
a wide individual difference. C. when irritated by objects, 
finds a partial relief if he can lay the blame on some person 
and take an imaginary vent against him. He states, "I 



MENTAL SITUATION STIMULATING ANGER 1$ 

have been cross and grouchy all day; 'felt out' with every- 
body. Several times the association of X. and Y. came up 
with a little rising anger and an attitude that they were 
somehow to be blamed. I was aware that they were not 
to be blamed, but at times I would find myself ignoring this 
and taking pleasure in criticising them adversely. "This 
tendency to personify the source of anger is illustrated in 
another incident from C. He lost his umbrella. He looked 
for it in several places with an increased feeling of irritation ; 
following a line of other associations, he imagined Z., a per- 
son whom he dislikes, walking off with it. He says, "All 
this was mildly pleasant. I was scarcely aware how im- 
probable it was that Z. had taken it, till the act of introspect- 
ing on the emotion. I really wanted to believe that he had 
taken it. "The personal objective reference to somewhat 
suppressed feelings of irritation frequently facilitates the 
sudden development of the emotion. The tendency to refer 
the anger to some innocent person, ignoring for the moment 
the real facts and forgetting one's sense of justice for the 
time being, is a matter in which there are marked individual 
differences in the subjects studied. 

It is a common characteristic of the initial stage of anger, 
that although there is an awareness that the emotion is due 
to a series of irritating stimuli, the entire situation exciting 
the anger is ignored and the anger is referred to some per- 
son, frequently one recently associated in time. Thus ob- 
jectified, anger seems to find a more ready expression. 
Anger is more successfully developed from a fore-period of 
irritation if the present predicament is in any way associated 
with a person or situation against which there is already an 
emotional disposition of dislike. A feeling of pleasurable 
satisfaction is often reported to follow the successful ex- 
pression of anger after feelings of irritation. 

Anger with a fore-period of irritation is common with all 
the subjects studied, but the manner in which the anger 



1 6 PSYCHOLOGY AND PEDAGOGY OP ANGER 

arises from these feelings is a matter of wide individual dif- 
ference. They all get angry at objects when they act as 
hindrances. With B. and C, who live alone, this tendency 
is more marked. With all the persons studied, anger with 
a fore-period of irritation occurs more frequently against 
objects and situations than against persons. When persons 
are involved in anger of this type, they are usually those 
with whom there is close intimacy or with servants and chil- 
dren. 

The sentiment of justice may facilitate the development of 
anger arising from feelings of irritation. Irritable, feel- 
ings may more readily develop into anger if a situation is 
associated in which fairness and justice are violated, al- 
though the point of justice may be far removed, from the 
actual cause of the irritation. Under the influence of irri- 
tation, there is frequently a little more sensitiveness to in- 
justice if the idea of unfairness can facilitate in the ob- 
jective reference to the emotion. The following instance 
will illustrate. A. was walking along the street at night in 
an irritable state of mind in connection with a series of inci- 
dents just past. In this state of mind he came to a place 
where a new house was being built and the builders had left 
an accumulation of dirt on the sidewalk. When it rained, 
the water would collect making the walk bad. He had pre- 
viously noted that they had made enough progress with the 
building that it was unnecessary to leave the dirt on the 
walk. "On this occasion," he states, "I now become quite 
indignant, and suddenly found myself in imagination tele- 
phoning the street commissioner in an angry attitude and 
tone of voice, telling him about the dirt and where the house 
was located, and ending with the sentence, 'It is an out- 
rage to tax payers.' " But this did not fully satisfy his re- 
sentment. He imagined himself the next day walking up 
to the overseer of the construction gang and assuming a 
rather indignant air, telling him among other things that 



MENTAL SITUATION STIMULATING ANGER 1 7 

the way he had left the walk was an outrage to the public. 
On the other hand, the sense of justice may be ignored for 
the time if it does not aid expression. In some extreme 
cases the subject may assume a make-believe attitude and 
trump up reasons to suit his own ends regardless of the 
facts. The tendency is strong to give some justifiable ex- 
pression to the present mental predicament. In such cases 
reason serves the purpose of feeling. All other mental pro- 
cesses may become subservient to the rising indignation till 
the point of anger is reached, but with the expression of 
anger, the illusion of fairness usually disappears. The be- 
havior that seemed so commendable while angry may ex- 
cite shame or regret after the emotion has been vented. 

Negative Self-feeling. A second characteristic mental 
situation from which anger arises, is that connected with 
negative self- feeling; the self- feeling has been lowered and 
anger follows. In the observation of all the observers, it 
appears at times in the initial stage of anger. Whatever 
outside situation occasions lowered self-feeling may indi- 
rectly give rise to anger. And just as there are feelings of 
irritation, which do not pass into anger, so there are negative 
self-feelings which are not followed by anger. In the de- 
scription of this feeling, it appears in marked contrast to the 
anger that follows. As to time, it may last but a moment 
before anger arises. In other instances the feeling of humil- 
iation may be rather prolonged or repeated before anger 
arises. The feeling is described as unpleasant, as a lack of 
motor tension, a feeling like shrinking up, an impulse to 
get away, a confused inco-ordinated state of mind. A rather 
wide vocabulary referring to self and the feeling side of ex- 
perience is used by the subjects to designate this feeling in 
colloquial language. Examples of such phrases from the 
observations are as follows : — "I felt sat on," "Was humili- 
ated," "Felt inefficient," "Felt imposed upon," "Felt stepped 
on," "A feeling of self depreciation," "Felt offended," "A 



1 8 PSYCHOLOGY AND PEDAGOGY OP ANGER 

feeling of subjection," "Felt as if he thought I were no 
good," "Felt worried," "Felt as if he were hitting at me," 
"Felt that what he said reflected on my ability," "Disap- 
pointed in myself," "Felt ashamed," "My feelings were 
wounded," "Felt that that was insult added to injury," 
"Felt slighted," "Feeling of abasement," "I was embarrass- 
ed," "Felt as if I had been caught with the goods on." 

Unlike the feeling of irritation, negative self-feeling has 
a more definite reference to the outside situation and for the 
most part refers to persons. It will be noted that the origin 
of anger from the mental situation of lowered self-feeling, 
and that from a condition of irritable feelings, comes about 
by quite different processes. The latter is reached by an in- 
creased complexity till the anger point is suddenly attained. 
In the former case the anger comes about as a rather sudden 
reaction from a state of consciousness that is in marked con- 
trast to anger. Notes from the reports will illustrate this 
characteristic. B. had made some errors at a public meeting. 
X. in a speech jokingly called attention to the errors. At 
first B. was confused and felt a little worried and embarrass- 
ed. In a few moments he found himself mildly angry at 
X. and was planning to retaliate. B. states that his anger 
did not refer to the fact that he had made the error, but to 
X. who had humiliated him by calling public attention to it. 
F. went to get a check cashed and was refused. He states, 
"I felt belittled and became indignant as I walked away. 
.... With the appearance of the imagery of another per- 
son getting his check cashed the day before, I became quite 
angry." He adds that he was not angry because of the fail- 
ure to get the check cashed, but because of the discrimina- 
tion against himself. The anger referred to the cashier. 
The idea that he was acting according to rules and not per- 
sonally responsible, appeared, but was ignored by a recall of 
the imagery of the other person getting his check cashed. 



MENTAL SITUATION STIMULATING ANGER 19 

I Negative self-feeling appears rather suddenly without 
any definite conscious fore-period of its own. It is a state 
of consciousness predetermined by pleasurable feelings of 
self regard. In taking the report of C's emotions one even- 
ing, there was found to be an unusual number. He had 
been usually observing from one to four emotions each day, 
with occasionally a day having no experiences of anger. On 
this particular day he had observed and taken notes on 
twelve rather strongly developed cases of anger. An in- 
quiry into the cause showed nothing except that he had felt 
extra well all day and had turned off more than the usual 
amount of work. This was a disturbing situation in con- 
nection with evidence that had previously been collected 
from G. and D. These two persons have few emotions of 
anger and have gone over a week with no experience of 
anger. On December 4th, D. took observations on four 
cases of anger. On inquiry it was found that he had been 
ill and not slept the night before. G. on the two days that 
he was ill introspected on ten cases of anger. An examina- 
tion of G's and D's reports indicate a fore-period of irrita- 
ble feelings or a lack of immediate conscious fore-period. 
In none of these cases was there any indication of lowered 
self-feeling in the fore-period of the emotion, while with 
each of the introspections of C. on the day he felt extra well 
and reported on the unusual number of twelve cases, there 
was a fore-period of negative self-feeling. With A. on the 
days when he feels best, there is an increase in the number 
of cases of anger with an initial lowered self-feeling. Such 
evidences as we have, indicate that anger with a fore-period 
of negative self-feeling occurs most readily when the senti- 
ment of self-regard is active, — on the days when the person 
is well pleased with himself. It is true that the play of this 
sentiment only appears in consciousness, when it has been 
interfered with or enhanced. It makes up an essential men- 
tal pre-disposition in connection with the situation stimulat- 



20 PSYCHOLOGY AND PEDAGOGY OP ANGER 

ing anger. The following note from C's observations will 
illustrate. C. met X. and spoke to him; X. paid no atten- 
tion. C. states, "For a moment I felt humiliated I 

said to myself, 'He does not know my importance.' C. then 
became quite angry thinking cutting remarks about X. and 
ending the emotion by finding an excuse for X's not seeing 
him. 

Any remark, suggestion, chance association, it may be, 
attitude of another or incident, which in any way lowers the 
sentiment of self-respect may stimulate anger. In this re- 
gard there is a wide individual difference with the persons 
studied and with the same person at different times. A 
trivial incident may lower the play of the self-regarding sen- 
timent and consequently give rise to anger, while at other 
times a direct thrust at one's honor may be ignored. The 
personality of the offender, his social and intellectual stand- 
ing, his general demeanor and attitude, play an important 
part in the entire emotional situation, but at times personality 
is ignored and a "chip is carried on the shoulder" for the 
chance passer-by. 

It appears in the results that the anger of the person who 
is not in authority against the one who is, or the anger of 
the man lower down against the one higher up, usually has 
a fore-period of negative self-feeling. A mental disposition 
toward the one in power in addition to the sentiment of self- 
regard, is a predetermining mental situation in exciting low- 
ered self-feeling and consequently anger. The most intense 
instances of anger that C. D. and E. experienced were 
against persons in power. D. — "I was aware they were in 
authority and were taking advantage of it to run us out. I 
felt a little humiliated but not angry as I left the room. It 
occurred to me they were rather small in usurping the 
place." A little later D. became quite angry and carried 
on in imagination a rather extensive verbal combat with the 
usurpers in which he came out victor. E. states in his ob- 



MENTAL SITUATION STIMULATING ANGER 21 

servation, "If X. had been an ordinary man, I would not 
have given the occasion a second thought. But being very 
high up.. . . I was inclined to take less off of him than 
those I consider as not knowing better." 

On the other hand a certain mental disposition toward the 
person lower down in connection with the self-regarding 
sentiment may be a precondition of anger. Too great fam- 
iliarity from an inferior may momentarily lower the self- 
regarding sentiment to his level and in consequence excite 
anger ; we do not resent a slap on the back by one whom we 
admire or recognize as our superior, but we do from our 
inferior. The same act from the one may heighten our 
self-respect while from the other it is lowered. D. reports 
a case of anger when he was in a crowd. A boy kept pur- 
posely stepping on his heels. He states, "I was not hurt but 
he acted too familiar for a boy under the circumstances. I 
took his attitude as a personal matter and felt a little humil- 
iated." A. reporting a case of anger stimulated by a person 
whom he holds in low esteem, says, "It was not what X. did 
so much, but it was his familiar confidential attitude before 
others that embarrassed me." 

It appears frequently in the observations that it is not what 
is done or said, so much as it is the attitude of the person, 
that is so offensive. A too positive and aggressive action, 
a too great display of wisdom, a too familiar or condescend- 
ing demeanor, may be the essential element in the stimulus 
to anger. The following phrases are noted by the different 
subjects as being an important part of the situation stimu- 
lating anger of the type now being treated. C. — "I resent- 
ed his too dignified air more than anything else." G. — 
"What angered me most was his condescending attitude as 
if he knew it all." I. — "He acted too wise and I was aware 
he was trying to lord it over us. That was the most offen- 
sive part." H. — "He sat and stared at me as if he thought 
I didn't know what I was talking about." F. — "He took on 



22 PSYCHOLOGY AND PlSDAGOGY OF ANGER 

a wise air implying that he had already passed through the 
stage in which I now was." E. — "It was not his statement 
so much as it was his rather spiteful attitude that angered 
me." A. — "It was not what he said. It was his haughty 
air and little condescending laugh in dismissing the matter 
that rang in my ears." 

While in the presence of a situation that lowers self-feel- 
ing, even though persons may not be connected with the 
situation, it is a common characteristic to refer the anger to 
some person. The bounds of justice may be, for the mo- 
ment, overstepped. The dim awareness with some, that 
the person is not to be blamed, is ignored for the time, while 
the tendency is strongest in consciousness to give expression 
to the emotion. The individual differences here are quite 
marked. G. apparently has developed a habit of referring 
his anger to a principle, ignoring the personality. In many 
of his observations, persons were connected with a situa- 
tion, but were neglected in his attention to the principle 
violated. A business man had told him an untruth causing 
him difficulty. G. states, "I was not angry at the man. That 
was his way of doing business." In the course of his emo- 
tional experience, his anger became rather intense, referring 
to the business ethics practiced. The degree in which the 
sense of justice is ignored under the influence of anger of 
this type is also a matter of wide individual difference. 

In the observations collected, anger at one's self appears 
quite frequently. There have been no cases found, in which 
anger at one's self develops purely from a fore-period of ir- 
ritation. The subject takes the matter to himself and feels 
a little humiliated and degraded and may react against his 
own personality in the same manner that he would against 
another. Two observers, B. and G., quite frequently get 
angry at themselves. A. reports that this sort of anger 
rarely occurs with him. G. observes the following case. 
After he had been repeatedly humiliated by his own failure, 



MENTAL SITUATION STIMULATING ANGER 23 

he says, "I felt as if I were so inefficient. I said to myself, 
'If I had a man working for me and he should do work in 
that manner I would discharge him.' ". G. then continued 
to talk to himself like another person in rather severe con- 
demnatory language. B. was reading a book. He could 
not understand the author's demonstration. He had made 
several trials at it. He states, "I felt as if I must be stupid, 
somehow; there was a slight feeling of worry and deject- 
ion. The idea of my stupidity was followed by anger at 
myself for being so stupid. I clinched my fists and threw 
my arms in angry demonstration, feeling as if I would like 
to pummel myself. I went over the demonstration again 
with an attitude of carefulness and finally concluded that it 
was the author who was hazy instead of myself. I slammed 
the book down on the table and broke forth angrily, 'You, 
X., are the one who is stupid, you don't make it clear.' This 
anger at the author was rather pleasant in quality. I felt 
a sort of triumph over him." 

Another situation quite common in the origin of anger 
with a fore-period of lowered self-feeling, is its appearance 
at times with greater intensity after the actual outside stim- 
ulus is passed. One becomes more angry in recalling after- 
ward what was said, than he was at the time of the offense. 
This belated origin of anger appears in the observations of 
all the subjects studied. It may be noted that anger with a 
fore-period of irritation does not appear in this retarded 
manner. In the recall of an incident in imagination, anger 
may become quite intense; while it may be at the time of 
the incident, there was no awareness of any tendency to 
anger. Mild anger at the time of the initial stimulus may 
become intensified in its recall. In such cases there was evi- 
dently some element lacking in the mental situation stimulat- 
ing anger. An offensive statement in the heat of an irasci- 
ble discussion may be ignored. A rather severe thrust may 
seem proper, but when recalled in connection with another 



24 PSYCHOLOGY AND PEDAGOGY OP ANGER 

mental situation, the emotional content may be entirely 
changed. X. in the course of an argument with E. implied, 
"You never will know as much about the subject under dis- 
cussion as Y." "At the time I noted his statement and was 
aware that it was a thrust at myself, but I had no feeling 
about the matter then. I considered that I was producing 
the better argument, and his personal thrust I was aware 
was an admission on his part that he knew I was. To-day I 
recalled his statement and felt degraded and angry." Then 
C. proceeded to plan a series of cutting remarks that he 
would like to tell X. In some instances the presence of a too 
active aggressive attitude at the time of the stimulus seems 
to predispose against a too easy lowering of self-esteem, and 
consequently anger with a fore-period of negative self-feel- 
ing does not appear. But let one momentarily lose faith in 
his point of view or fail in words to express it, and he be- 
comes more sensitive to the thrusts of his opponent's argu- 
ment. 

Another factor partly accounts for the greater emotional 
intensity of the recalled incident. The conventional con- 
trol of emotions during social contact may be relaxed dur- 
ing the memory recall. The same ethical standard is not re- 
quired for one's private thinking as in actual contact with 
others. In this respect there is rather wide individual 
difference with the subjects studied. Though in general 
with persons of rather intense emotions, there is a marked 
difference in the ethical standard they practice, when the 
incident is present to consciousness, and the standard used 
when the anger occurs from the imaged situation ; with all 
persons studied at times during their most intense anger 
emotions, the imaginative reaction is far more crude and 
unethical, and consequently the imaged anger may be more 
intense. A third factor may be involved here. A person- 
al thrust may be partly ignored at the time without lowered 
dignity because it is given with a smile or a friendly attitude, 



MENTAL SITUATION STIMULATING ANGER ?5 

but when recalled later, the friendliness may be neglected 
and consequently anger is more intense. A fourth condi- 
tion that partly accounts for more intense anger in the 
imaged situation, is that the anger consciousness of this type 
is usually cumulative. With an entirely novel experience, 
a certain amount of resistance must be broken down before 
the emotion develops. The emotion seems to develop by a 
cumulative process through a series of stimuli. One per- 
sonal thrust in a situation in which there is involved no 
previous emotional excitement, may be ignored or the hu- 
miliation may be borne at the time with no anger reactions ; 
but when it is repeated one or more times under similiar cir- 
cumstances, there is present a characteristic mental situa- 
tion for the development of anger. The repeated occurr- 
ence of the incident in the imagination intensifies the feel- 
ings till anger becomes fully developed. E.'s observations 
will illustrate. "During the argument with X., I was in 
splendid humor, enjoying myself to the fullest and naturally 
supposed everybody was." Referring to a statement made 
by X. , during the argument, E. states, "The glow of the 
conflict had not entirely departed when I began to see his 
statement in an entirely new light as reflecting on myself, 
then I felt somewhat distressed and overcome to a slight de- 
cree, by a feeling of abasement but no resentment against X. 
The next day at ten o'clock I was recalling the events of 
the argument. There was still a feeling of abasement but 
now it stirred me to anger. I found myself going over it 
and thinking what I might have said, and what I would say 
the next time." 

Anger Without an Immediate Peeling Fore-period. This 
study was begun tentatively with the view held by Wundt 
(21) that each emotion of anger has an immediate feel- 
ing fore-period. The study had not progressed far till this 
view had to be abandoned. It early appeared in the ob- 
servations that anger may begin rather suddenly with no 



V 

26 PSYCHOLOGY AND PEDAGOGY OF ANGER 

initial feeling fore-period, which the observer is able to find. 
The subject reports that he suddenly finds himself in the 
midst of an emotion of anger before he is scarcely aware of 
it, and is giving verbal and motor expressions usually ac- 
companying such emotions. In many of the emotions of 
this type there is evidence in the observations that the emo- 
tion refers to a previous emotional experience. From the 
mental disposition left over from the previous emotion, the 
emotion suddenly emerges without passing through the 
cumulative process that is necessary with an entirely novel 
emotional experience. In other words the way has previ- 
ously been broken so that it is not necessary to break down 
the same amount of resistance. A. observes, "Sitting in 
my room, I imaged X. At once I was angry, motor ex- 
pression not marked at first. X. was imaged in a rather 
positive and demonstrative attitude which he sometimes 
takes. I found myself with quite a good deal of motor ac- 
tivity saying in voco-motor fashion as if talking to X. 

I was partly aware of three former disagreements with X., 
the imagery of the circumstances of the last one was most 
clearly defined. I imagined X. a little humbled by my re- 
mark. The emotional experience from the first was pleas- 
ant. I felt a little victorious in the imaginary act of deal- 
ing a telling thrust." 

With all persons studied, there is evidence of a previously 
developed mental disposition against certain persons and 
against certain principles which allows the anger point to be 
reached in a short cut fashion. Anger is easily attained 
without the initial feeling either of irritation or lowered 
self-feeling. Anger that rises from this situation is usually 
pleasant in quality. The mental disposition which is con- 
nected with this sudden origin of anger may be present dur- 
ing the later recall of the emotion. It is also shown by the 
frequent re-occurrence that the same stiuation may repeat- 
edly give rise to anger. B. has a rather strongly developed 



MENTAL SITUATION STIMULATING ANGER 2f 

sentiment against ministers who preach what they do not be- 
lieve; G. against persons who do their work carelessly, es- 
pecially manufacturers who send out goods of inferior qual- 
ity. I. has a marked sentiment against acts of cruelty in 
the treatment of animals. D. reacts rather vigorously 
against persons who are disloyal to friendship. These sen- 
timents go back to early experiences in the life of the indi- 
viduals. 

B. in talking with X. directed the conversation to minis- 
ters who preach what they really do not believe. He took 
Dr. Y. as an example. He had previously seen Dr. Y. 
drinking beer with the boys and had resented his behavior. 
He began to vituperate to X. against Y., giving instances 
and telling his opinion rather vigorously about such men 
who have a double personality. "Before I was scarcely 
aware of it, I was in the midst of motor and verbal expres- 
sions of righteous indignation. I enjoyed it all very much. 
I always take delight in making myself angry with minis- 
ters of this sort." B. has reported other instances of his 
anger against ministers of this type. A case from I. will 
illustrate further. "I had the same recurring anger for 
three weeks. A delivery boy who passes about the same 
time each day goes by whipping and abusing his horse. 
Anger arises each time the incident occurs. The sight made 
me pleasantly indignant. I have the image of an old Ger- 
man, living near my home as a child, who treated his 
horse so cruelly. The idea of telephoning to the police oc- 
curs to me, but the boys goes on and the idea is abandoned." 



BEHAVIOR OF CONSCIOUSNESS 



CHAPTER TWO 

BEHAVIOR OF CONSCIOUSNESS 
Wundt (21) has pointed out that there are two types of 
reaction to an emotion, what he calls outer and inner voli- 
tional acts. The first refers to the external bodily expres- 
sion of an emotion and the latter to the mental behavior. 
In the study of the emotions, attention has for the most part 
been directed to the former. Darwin's study of the emo- 
tions in man and animals, early called attention to the finer 
^ physical expressions of each emotion, explaining them as 
instinctive habits which were formerly useful. Darwin's 
study partly paved the way for the James-Lange theory, 
which maintains that what we experience as an emotion is 
but the sensation of the instinctive physical expression. 

The aim of this chapter is to study the mental behavior 
during the conscious period the anger exists. It is recog- 
nized that the motor and physical expressions is primary and 
fundamental. For that reason it has served so adequately 
in the objective study of the emotion. What we shall at- 
tempt to study is the mental behavior of persons under the 
influence of anger. Ethics tells us how we ought to act 
when angry, but psychology has negelcted to find out how 
in reality consciousness does behave when the emotional ex- 
citement is on. David Iron's (12) statement is still apro- 
pos. He writes, "The neglect of the reactive side of human 
consciousness is nowhere more conspicuous than in the case 
of the emotions." 

The anger consciousness is characterized by heightened 
mental activity. A multiple number of images, attitudes, 
fluctuations of the emotional and feeling content appear in 
rapid succession till the emotion disappears. This state- 
ment is true for even the more tenuous instances of anger. 
In fact some of the milder experiences have the most marked 
changeableness of conscious content. Objectively there 

31 



32 PSYCHOLOGY AND PEDAGOGY OP ANGER 

may be little activity, while simultaneously on the mental 
side, there is a wealth of processes which must be consider- 
ed in the psychology of the emotions. 

After making a rather minute collection of the different 
kinds of mental reaction to anger, as shown by the intro- 
spections, it is observed that they fall into three rather 
clear types of conscious behavior. The first type is in the 
general direction of the emotive tendency and is the one 
that most impulsively follows on the stimulus of the emo- 
tion. It expresses pugnacity in some form. This type of 
reaction expresses a tendency similar to the basal instinct 
of the emotion of anger, such as thinking cutting remarks, 
imagining the offender's humiliation, hostile witticism, jok- 
ing and sarcasm. This type of a reaction will be called 
attributive reaction. A second type is contrary to pugnac- 
ity; the instinctive impulse is reversed. A friendly atti- 
tude may be assumed toward the offender, an adequate ex- 
cuse it found for his offense, an over polite attitude may be 
taken. This type of behavior will be called the contrary 
reaction. A third type is one that is entirely of a conscious 
attitudinal character. The subject becomes indifferent to 
the whole situation exciting the emotion. The offense may 
suddenly be apathetically ignored and the subject behaves 
unconcerned and assumes an "I don't care," or a "What-is- 
the-use" attitude. This will be called indifferent reaction. 
These three types of behavior are characteristic of the re- 
active consciousness to anger. The emotion may contain 
one, or it may contain all three of these types before it fin- 
ally ends. Going over the results of the observations of all 
the subjects, about fourteen hundred sixty eight reactions 
are counted in the six hundred cases of anger studied. 
Seventy one per cent of such reactions are classified as attri- 
butive reaction, eighteen percent are the contrary type, and 
eleven percent are the indifferent. 



BEHAVIOR OF CONSCIOUSNESS 33 

The initial reaction to anger is always of the attributive 
type. Whatever other reactions may follow in the course 
of the entire anger period, the attributive reaction in some 
form is characteristic of the early stage of the emotion. The 
contrary and indifferent types are secondary in point of time 
and occur after the initial hostile tendencies have been re- 
strained. If an emotion of anger is made up entirely of 
the attributive type, which frequently occurs, and continues 
for any length of time, it is always noted that some of the 
reactions are more crude and unsocial and others are re- 
fined, disguised it may be, covered up, and when the emo- 
tion is most intense whether it be in the initial stage or else- 
where, the unsocial attributive tendencies are usually found 
at those places. 

ATTRIBUTIVE REACTION 
The anger consciousness in its development, especially in 
its initial stage is characterized by restraint. The subject 
is aware of hostile unlawful impulses that must be controll- 
ed. Its initial stage is usually reported as unpleasant. The 
second characteristic of the anger consciousness is reaction 
of some sort. What takes place on the mental side, is along 
the line of least resistance for the moment. Mental life is 
rather versatile in providing subjective reaction to anger. 
Motor and visual imagery play an important role involving 
lessened resistance. A third characteristic of the anger 
consciousness is what the Germans call "Verschiebung." 
The emotive tendency is inhibited. A substitution follows 
for the tendencies restrained. It may be purely subjective 
or only partly subjective. But the subject in the observa- 
tion of his anger is fully aware that he would behave in 
some more drastic fashion if the restraint were off. 

Substitution of Visual and Motor Imagery. With the 
subjects studied there occurred no real pugnacious attack 
in which blows were struck except with those persons who 



34 PSYCHOLOGY AND PEDAGOGY OF ANGER 

have the correction of children; there are also but few real 
quarrels reported. But the versatility of consciousness in 
substituting and providing merely mental reaction for other 
hostile tendencies that the subject really wished fulfilled is 
quite striking. Visual and motor imagery may take the 
place of tendencies which are inhibited and allow a suc- 
cessful expression. An observation from A. will illustrate. 
"I found myself saying cutting remarks as if speaking direct- 
ly to X., and I planned a course of behavior toward him that 
I considered would humiliate him. I finally ended by im- 
agining myself kicking him down the street, telling him I 
wanted no more to do with him. The imagery of this act 
was pleasant. I felt victorious. X. was imagined as peni- 
tent." The imagery of the pugnacious attack in some form 
is a quite common characteristic of the mental reaction to 
anger. It occurs after a period of restraint when there 
seems nothing else to be done; imagination and fancy ap- 
pear at such a crisis and assume the role of a surrogate for 
hostile tendencies, which the subject has controlled. The 
awareness of the direct end of the initial tendency of the 
anger may be present in consciousness or the aim may be 
indefinite. Subject I. observes, "I felt as if I wanted to say 
something or do something at once that would get even 
with X. The thing to do was vague, but the impulse to do 
something in a hostile manner was strong." The aim of 
behavior may be rather difinitely formed in the early stage 
of the anger consciousness as soon as the irasible feelings 
are definitely referred to some object. An illustration from 
A. follows: — "The impulse to take X. (a child) and shake 
him, was strong on the first stimulus of the emotion; sup- 
pressing this I spoke crossly to him, at the same time there 
appeared motor imagery of my holding him with both 
hands and shaking him." Another instance from the same 
subject: "I had an impulse to punish X., restraint was im- 
mediately followed by a motor and visual imagery of the 



BEHAVIOR OF CONSCIOUSNESS 35 

act of punishment." Subject C. observes, "The first im- 
pulse was to kick X., the restraint was accompanied by mot- 
or images of kicking him, followed by the image of his be- 
ing hurt in the face." E. states "I felt as if I would like 
to shake him and imagined myself doing it." G. developed 
a case of anger from a series of irritating stimuli. Describ- 
ing his anger, he says, "I felt like I wanted to bite or hit 
something." B. reports a case when he had been humiliat- 
ed by some boys along the street. The tendency to anger 
at the time was controlled, but as he passed on, the emotion 
arose with greater intensity. "I imagined myself beating 
one of the boys, I gave. him several good punches; he had 
no show at all. I came out victor and was enjoying it all." 
One of the many sorts of mental reactions that H. reports to 
a case of anger that extended over three quarters of an hour, 
is, "I imagined myself charging at him and his looking 
frightened at my behavior." 

Substitution of Irascible Play. The imagined fight and 
victory take the place of tendencies which would have a 
more objective expression. Another sort of substitution of 
the initially restrained emotional reaction, is first to lessen 
the restraint by inhibition and react in some less crude man- 
ner in a slightly disguised form, which gives a feeling of 
satisfaction in inner victory and at the same time lacks the 
objective hostility. A. felt humiliated because of X.'s re- 
mark in the presence of others. "Resenting his familiarity, 
I went out of my way to pass him ; I grabbed his arm and 
gave it a tremendous grip, at the same time I smiled play- 
fully. I really aimed to hurt him and was fully aware that 
I wished to hurt him worse than I did. What I did was 
merely a substitution, but now that the act was over, I felt 
fully satisfied and pleased with what I had done." The 
playful attack is a rather common sort of reaction to resent- 
ment with observers A., C. and D. D. observes, "I was 
angry at X. and was trying to control myself; suddenly I 



36 PSYCHOLOGY AND PEDAGOGY OP ANGER 

grabbed him and punched him several times in the ribs, at 
the same time I smiled. I did not want him or the others 
to know I was angry. I enjoyed pummelling him, as I felt 
I had demonstrated to him that I could handle him." In 
such observations the subject's awareness that what he does 
in a playful fashion is but a substitution of what he would 
like to do in another manner, is significant. This sort of 
awareness seems to be ignored in the every-day experience 
of our emotional life. Attention is directed to the reaction ; 
we involuntarily seek a place of lessened resistance, but the 
act of introspection allows the subject to be more clearly 
aware of the inhibited reaction and the substituted expres- 
sion which follows. 

Substitution of Imaginary Invective and Cutting Re-- 
marks. The vocal expression of anger is one of primary 
significance. Swearing, grumbling, invective, quarrelling, 
inter jectional obloquy, etc., are very common signs of 
anger. The results would very strongly suggest that anger 
rarely, if ever, occurs without its vocal expression in some 
manner, if not by direct vocalization either by inner speech 
or voco-motor imagery. Introspection of slight emotions 
or anger lasting momentarily, show as their most marked 
sensation, one of tightening of the throat muscles. Defam- 
atory language or mild swearing is common with all the 
subjects studied while in the privacy of their own rooms 
when the restraint is off. The expression of the vocal cords 
is one of the most successful vents. B. was instructed to 
abandon himself to vigorous invective and inter jectional 
obloquy when the emotion first began and note the result. 
He followed these instructions on three occasions when the 
emotion from the beginning was unpleasant, developing 
from a fore-period of irritation. With this sort of volun- 
tary vigorous vocal expression, the anger soon passed into 
rather pleasurable excitement. 



BEHAVIOR OF CONSCIOUSNESS 37 

The reaction to anger in its initial stage may be a vocal 
tendency to express one's anger, referring the emotion di- 
rectly to some person or to an object. When the restraint 
is on, either from motives of decency or the absence of the 
offender, the thinking of cutting remarks may be substituted 
for the actual verbal attack. The subject is aware that 
what he says to himself he would like to say to the offender. 
Methods of procedure are elaborately planned for a future 
verbal attack, just what he expects to say and wants to say, 
how he will say it, the inflection of the voice, the emphasis 
of words and dramatic attitude. He may imagine the ef- 
fect of the attack on his opponent, the latter may talk back. 
The imagined verbal combat is usually a one-sided affair and 
ends in victory for the subject. Drastic remarks and the 
most cutting sarcasms are planned at times by the subjects 
studied. However there are wide individual differences 
which cannot be referred entirely to the difference in intens- 
ity of the emotional life. Habit apparently plays an im- 
portant role. D. felt that he had been imposed upon by X. 
and Y. After the humiliating incident had passed, D. sud- 
denly found himself in the midst of an anger reaction. "I 
found myself having a verbal combat with them. I imag- 
ined I was telling X., 'I should think it costs but little to act 
like a gentleman, but I presume this is an illustration of your 
piggishness.' Then I imagined Y. beginning to talk. Just 
what he was saying was not clear, but I was aware that he 
was helping X. I interrupted by telling him, 'I understand 

you are from and of course I can't expect anything 

better of you.' They began to talk back several times, but 
I got the better of them and felt pleased about it." 

The cutting remarks are at times crude and abusive. The 
subject may swear at the offender. Persons who do not 
swear in actual life frequently do in imagination. In such 
imaginative verbal attacks the offender's bad qualities are 
displayed before him, at other times the same subject may 



38 PSYCHOLOGY AND PEDAGOGY OF ANGER 

resort to imagery, sarcasm, witticism or joking of a hostile 
nature. The motivation seems to be to imagine remarks 
that would humiliate the offender. The visual imagery of 
the astonished humble opponent is usual in these imaginary 
attacks. Crude and abusive remarks may at times seem en- 
tirely appropriate; at others, sarcasm and irascible joking 
seem more adequate. Sarcasm usually develops rather 
slowly with a period of restraint preceding it, unless it is 
ready made for the occasion. When the fitting sarcastic 
remark is found, it is usually accompanied by pleasantness 
in some degree. F. observes, "I could get no imaginative 
remark that would suit me at first, but after the emotion ap- 
peared several times in succession I suddenly discovered 
one and found myself saying it over and over again. It 
rather pleased me, I practiced it to get the right inflection 
and emphasis that I desired." 

The imaginative cutting remark may be in the second 
person as if addressed directly to the offender, especially 
when the emotion is intense. It may be in the third per- 
son about the offender, his unfavorable qualities are re- 
called with no plan or intention of repeating his remarks to 
him. The contemplation of his unworthiness is accompan- 
ied by an agreeable feeling. B. became righteously indig- 
nant at X. because of an incident of ungentlemanly con- 
duct toward a friend. He observes, "A moment later (that 
is after the first instance of anger) I imagined myself in my 
alcove in the Library, and imagined some other person, I 
did not know, who came in and said to me, "What do you 
think of X?' I replied with a good deal of pleasurable in- 
dignation, 'I think he is a damned ass.' Three-quarters of 
an hour later as I was walking along the street, the emo- 
tion arose again, and I imagined some one asking the same 
question, I replied the same as before with a like feeling of 
pleasure. I really wanted some one to ask me what I 
thought of X. The subject may be aware that what he says 



BEHAVIOR OF CONSCIOUSNESS |9 

to and about the opponent is a little unfair, but at the time 
that the emotion is progressing", he ignores it and wants to 
believe ill of the offender. 

The results of this study abundantly show that a make- 
believe attitude plays an important role in the anger con- 
sciousness, in both the development of the anger and the 
reactive consciousness. It is believed momentarily, when 
the anger is most intense, that the offender is really a bad 
man. Pausing for introspection in the midst of such emo- 
tional reaction, it is frequently reported, "I knew very well 
I would say nothing of the sort and that X. was not so bad 
as I believed him." While the emotion is most intense, ill 
reports about the offender which were previously ignored 
are now believed and assumed as true, and satisfaction is 
derived by degrading the best qualities of the offender, by 
believing stories of ill repute, by suspecting or imagining 
evil of him. The degree in which this tendency is present, 
depends partly on the intensity of the emotion, and evident- 
ly in part on the individual habits of reaction to anger. The 
chronic inrascible gossiper is evidently a characteristic type 
of person who has specialized in this mode of reaction to 
anger. 

Substitutions by Witticism and Irony. Witticism, sar- 
casm, irony, teasing and joking make up a large class of 
vocal and imaginal reactions which may take the place of 
the initially restrained emotional tendency. The crude re- 
marks, transformed into wit or fitting sarcasm, overcome 
the consciousness restraint that was initially present in the 
emotion and lessen resistance. It is accompanied by a pleas- 
ant feeling and may be keenly delightful. A thrust in a 
half serious tone accompanied by a smile, the jest and hos- 
tile joke follow a state of mind characterized by restraint. 
In the observations of the subjects studied there is evidence 
supporting Freud's (8) theory of wit. What he calls "ten- 
dency wit" ; that is, wit with a difinite aim has two divisions, 



40 PSYCHOUXiY AND PEDAGOGY OF ANGER 

the hostile joke and the obscene joke. The first is a reac- 
tion to irascible anger and the latter to the sexual emotions. 
The introspection of the reactive stage of anger conscious- 
ness shows the Freudian mechanism for "tendency wit." 
The following case will illustrate a crude kind of wit. H. 
whose husband had stayed out late at night became angry 
following a period of worry. Fluctuating intensities of 
anger and periods of worry lasted over an hour. After a 
number of reactions such as planning verbal attacks ; recall- 
ing his thoughtless behavior at other times ; crying, assum- 
ing an attitude of self-pity ; devising some means of making 
him sorry ; at times trying to assume the attitude that it was 
no use to be angry ; taking observations of the emotion at a 
number of places, motivated by a wish that her husband 
would see the results and feel sorry; imagining herself go- 
ing to him and talking rather abusively. Finally she 
found a remark that gave the keenest pleasure of all. "I 
imagined myself saying, "Petty dear, you have been out 
pretty late tonight.' ,: This was a condensed veiled state- 
ment expressing about all she would like to say. "Petty" is 
a character portrayed in a current illustrated newspaper 
as being mean to his wife and flaring up angrily at every lit- 
tle incident. The character of "Petty" was fully under- 
stood by her husband. The crude hostile reaction was fol- 
lowed by a rather condensed acute remark; it was reported 
as pleasant, "because it seemed so fitting." 

C. in a discussion with X. became angry and gives the fol- 
lowing observation, "I noted I was getting angry and want- 
ed to say something hostile, but instead I turned away sud- 
denly and laughed, saying in a joking, half-serious manner, 
'Oh you old bottle head, you don't know anything.' Al- 
though I laughed, I really meant it. That gave complete 
satisfaction. He laughed too." Let us illustrate further. 
A., with four others, was walking along the street, comings 
from a clinic at the hospital, where a case of flight of ideas 



BEHAVIOR OF CONSCIOUSNESS 41 

had just been observed. X., one of the party, was talking 
in a manner that seemed to A. a little superfluous. He re- 
sented his attitude, and turning he said to X. in a joking 
manner, "What did you say? The malady must be catch- 
ing," (referring to the case observed). X. retorted, "I 
never have any fixed ideas." A. replied, "No, they do fly 
away pretty fast." A. observed, "I felt pleased and victor- 
ious with my remark, my resentment was entirely gone and 
I entered into conversation with X. in a friendly manner." 
Witticism is one of the more refined modes of substitution 
for the more directly hostile attack. Sarcasm is cruder. 
Its mechanism depends for the most part upon the inflec- 
tion and tone of voice in speaking. The words themselves 
in sarcasm are innocent enough, but the mode of expression 
and the meaning involved are the sources of hostility. The 
following statement represent sarcastic remarks. A. — "I 
think I will come around to your Club," emphasis on the 
word "your." A. — again, "You surely must be right," 
emphasis on "surely." J. — "You are not the boss, then?" 
— emphasis on "not," with a little sneer and an accompany- 
ing laugh. Sarcasm is a rather cheap and easy reaction to 
anger. It is consequently more easily attained than wit. 
The period of conscious restraint preceding sarcasm is 
usually less, unless the witticism is already made for the 
occasion. Its feeling effect is also not so pleasant as of wit. 
At times sarcasm may be combined with rather crude wit, 
but wit of a more refined type will exclude sarcasm. The 
following is a combination of this kind. C, having become 
angry at X. for his "bragging attitude," says, "I was con- 
scious of the tendency to say something hostile, but could 
think of nothing appropriate. In the course of his remarks 
X. finally said, 'I never read anything for an experiment as 
I fear it 'might bias my results/ I suddenly found a re- 
mark that seemed entirely fitting at the time and at once the 
restraint was off. I said a little sarcastically, 'No, you 



42 PSYCHOLOGY AND PEDAGOGY OP ANGER 

never want to read anything, it might hurt your intellect.' 
As soon as the statement was made I saw I had gone too far 
and felt a little cheap. I at once noted that he did not take 
my remark seriously, and felt relieved. My former resent- 
ment had entirely disappeared." 

Substitution by Disguise. There are many devices less 
refined than wit which are commonly resorted to in slightly 
disguising the hostile attack. The offender may be attacked 
indirectly and impersonally. The following case will illustrate. 
F. became angry at a merchant because, when he went to 
pay for an article, the price was marked more than he had 
previously agreed to pay. Feeling resentful, he said, "I 
suppose the bill is all right, the clerk said it would be less, 
but people in this town don't know what they are talking 
about anyway." F. observes, "What I really meant was 
that you don't know what you are talking about." To avoid 
making the direct attack, the indefinite pronoun is substi- 
tuted at times for the definite. The use of "some one" or 
"somebody" instead of "y° u >" in talking to the offender 
blunts the remark. The device is rather cheap affording 
little pleasure and has but a short fore-period of restraint. 
It is carried to an extreme when the subject pretends he 
does not know the perpetrator of the offense and in fact 
may assume it is some one else, so that he may speak his 
mind directly to the offender. I. observes, "I was angry, 
and talked to her about the affair as if I did not know that 
she did it. I would'nt have had her to know that I knew 
for anything. I told her what I thought of a person who 
had acted in that way and noted that she looked cheap. That 
pleased me." Some gossip and vituperate against their ene- 
mies and derive a moiety of ill-gotten pleasure if a sympa- 
thetic hearer is found. One subject states, "I went to tell 
X., hoping he would be angry too, and felt just a little dis- 
appointed when he was not." Hints and insinuations often 
become devices to avoid a too hostile direct attack. 



BEHAVIOR OF CONSCIOUSNESS 43 

Imaginary Exaltation of Self. Another rather important 
reaction of the attributive type is an idealistic one. Imag- 
ination and ideational processes are active. Lowered self- 
feeling has been accomplished in the subject usually by a 
number of repeated offenses by some one that the subject 
really respects. The offender is frequently not imagined as 
degraded, but he is left as he is, and the subject proceeds to 
imagine, — it may be to fancy or day-dreams that he is the 
offender's superior. As the reaction to moments of humil- 
iation, he may later plan to surpass him. An attitude of 
make-believe may be momentarily assumed that he is al- 
ready the offender's superior. Fantastic schemes of a suc- 
cessful career may appear in which he imagines some dis- 
tant future, in which he has gained renown and the offend- 
er is glad to recall that he knew him in other days. Some- 
times he is imagined as seeking his friendship or advice, or 
favor, and is refused with dignity. At the next moment he 
may be graciously bestowing favors upon the offender. Such 
imaginative processes are observed to afford pleasure to the 
subject at the time and may lead to a new level of self-con- 
fidence which has important influences on later behavior. 
Usually idealistic reactions of this character appear in con- 
sciousness after more directly hostile reactions have failed 
to satisfy the subject. A few cases will illustrate. A., re- 
calling an incident of the day before which humiliated him, 
became angry. At first he began saying in voco-motor fash- 
ion as if talking directly to X., "You are a conceited fel- 
low. You are hard to get along with. I will beat you. 
You are too nervous to get very far." "I imagined myself 
treating him in a superior, dignified manner." A. then laid 
plans how he would work, stick to one thing, make himself 
a recognized authority, and how he would have little to do 
with X. He imagined X. coming to him for favors when 
he had attained the success he had planned, and himself 
taking a rather indifferent attitude toward his requests. A. 



44 PSYCHOWXJY AND PEDAGOGY OF ANGER 

observes that his entire reverie was pleasant, although the 
anger was unpleasant in the beginning. C. reports a case 
of anger at X. who had taken a rather critical attitude to- 
ward a problem which he was studying. He observes, "At 
first there was a slight humiliated feeling. This was dis- 
placed by resentment. I imagined myself standing before 
X. and giving him two good retorts which I considered 
would have their ill effects on him. At this point the theme 
changed, 'I will leave you alone and have nothing to do with 
you,' I felt as if this behavior would somehow punish 
him, and that pleased me a little." But as a third and final 
reaction C. observes the following. "I planned to do my 
work so well that X. would feel sorry for what he had said, 
I imagined X. complimenting me after it was finished." 
The early stage of the emotion above was reported as un- 
pleasant, the final ending in which C. imagines X. compli- 
menting him on his success was a point of marked pleas- 
ure. Subject E. who had felt humiliated by X. whom he 
considered had underestimated him, observed as a final re- 
action, "I will show him in the next ten years, I am young 
and can work, and he will see." Then followed a number 
of plans for the future. One subject reacts for a moment 
at times to resentment by day dreams in which he imagines 
himself a man of wealth and deals out favors to all except 
his enemy. He even uses his wealth and influence against 
him. The feeling is rather pleasant in tone till the moment 
he comes back to a sense of reality. The transition de- 
creases the pleasantness rather suddenly. 

Attitudinal Reactions. Attitudinal reactions of a hostile 
nature are an important part of the anger consciousness. 
What may be called "resolutional attitudes" frequently oc- 
cur as one of the final mental reactions in the diminution of 
the emotion. The resolutional attitude to do something in 
the future at a more convenient time when the effects will 
be greater, becomes a convenient substitute for conscious 



BEHAVIOR OF CONSCIOUSNESS 45 

tendencies that require present restraint. The subject defi- 
nitely settles on a course of action which cannot be carried 
out at once. The feeling tone of such conscious attitudes 
is pleasant. It is not unusual to have a settled resolution 
and come to a definite conclusion in the initial reactive stage 
of the emotion. Unless the attitude is ready made for the 
occasion, it appears as one of the final resorts. A charac- 
teristic of "nowness" belongs to anger. An attitude that 
portends to future behavior is secondary, appearing after 
the possibilities of present reactions are exhausted. Much 
of the initial restraint in inhibitions is preparatory to the 
attainment of a settled conclusion ; in some cases initial re- 
action behaves in a trial and error fashion. The results of 
a number of hostile impulses are imagined and are followed 
to their end until finally one is selected that seems most fit- 
ting. The conclusion reached may be temporary. Al- 
though it may be abandoned on the reappearance of the 
emotion, there is a temporary satisfaction in having attain- 
ed a conclusive attitude even momentarily. The following 
case from C. will illustrate. C. became angry on being told 
of X.'s behavior. He first recalled a number of previous 
similar instances ; second, he transferred the anger momen- 
tarily to another person who told him of the offense ; third, 
he imagined himself cutting off all business relations with 
X. and as a fourth reaction he observes, "I took on a pug- 
nacious attitude and concluded to fight it out according to 
the rules of the game, and planned what I would do and say 
to make him come my way." The attitude of waiting for 
further developments, biding one's time, being cautious, is 
a frequent substitute for rising tendencies demanding pres- 
ent action. Subject E. observes, "I finally came to the con- 
clusion not to lie in wait for the opportunity to get back at 
the offender, but to be on guard against a future attack, but 
even after the conclusion was formed it was not at once car- 
ried out though it pleased me. I still found myself plan- 



46 PSYCHOLOGY AND PEDAGOGY OP ANGER 

ning what I would say if the thing should be repeated." A. 
angry at X. and Y., finally came to the following hostile con- 
clusive attitude, "They had better be doing nothing like that, 
I will watch them, and when I get a chance they will hear 
from me. I will be cautious and sure first, with which final 
conclusion my anger disappeared." 

THE CONTRARY REACTION 

The second general type of reaction to anger is what we 
have called contrary reaction. The subject suddenly reacts 
contrary to the emotive tendency of the emotion. He be- 
haves contrary to what he actually wishes at the time. Re- 
ligion and morals have idealized this type of behavior in its 
extreme form. "Turn the other cheek," "Love your ene- 
my," "Do good to those that hate you," are exhortations of 
more than one religion. As compared with the type de- 
scribed above, relatively a small percent of the mental reac- 
tions under the influence of anger, as shown by the observa- 
tions of all the subjects studied, are classed as the contrary 
reactive type, eighteen percent as compared with seventy 
one percent. 

The contrary reaction is not so rich in versatile behavior 
as the one just described, in fact it is limited to a few set 
reactions. The subject suddenly reacts to a state of mind 
contrary to anger. It may take strong effort to make 
the change and the attitude is not heartily entered into at 
first and does not usually occur when the emotion is most 
intense, but after it is partly diminished, consequently it is 
usually delayed till a later stage of the emotion. If it ap- 
pears in the initial stage it precludes a complete develop- 
ment of the emotion. Subject G. has apparently acquired 
the habit of championing, in the initial stage of the emotion, 
the offender's point of view and forestalling the develop- 
ment of anger against persons. His anger is attained most 
fully against objects and situations. He considers this due 



BEHAVIOR OF CONSCIOUSNESS 47 

to his training in early childhood. E. has developed a par- 
tial habit of assuming an attitude of foregiveness toward the 
offender. C. and A. when in a quandary and unable to find 
other adequate means of expression, suddenly revert to the 
contrary reaction. It becomes a habitual device toward 
close and intimate friends or toward persons with whom it 
is necessary to get along. After the anger has gone so far, 
the subject suddenly assumes a friendly attitude as if there 
were no emotion. 

There are various conditions under which this sort of 
mental reaction to anger occurs. It is a frequent device in a 
social situation when there is rising anger and it becomes 
necessary to adopt a sudden and quick control. It is forced 
upon the subject to meet a sudden crisis. He may at once 
assume an over-friendly or over-polite behavior, when in 
reality he would like to behave in a hostile manner. A little 
over-solicitude for the offender may be conspicuously dis- 
played. A few cases will illustrate. B. was met on the 
stairs by his landlady, who requested him not to write on 
his machine after ten o'clock, also to put on his slippers on 
coming home late before ascending the stairs. He observes, 
"Before she had finished I felt uncomfortable and was 
vaguely aware of the inconvenience that these limitations 
would cause me. I recalled that she had said that I could use 
the typewriter all I wished when I took the room ; I found 
myself becoming angry, but at once I took the attitude of 
excusing her. I noted that she looked tired while she was 
talking, and thought perhaps I had kept her awake. I then 
said with an extra pleasant tone, 'That is all right, I am 
very glad you speak of it, I wish you had told me before/ 
The pleasantness was assumed, I did not feel pleasant as I 
spoke, I was still mildly angry. Five minutes later I re- 
called what she had said and began to get angry again, but 
at once imaged her tired appearance and excused her as be- 
fore." A.'s observation illustrates further. A. was humil- 
iated and angry at X.'s statement. "I wanted to say some- 



48 PSYCHOLOGY AND PEDAGOGY OF ANGSR 

thing cutting, several hostile remarks appeared which were 
inhibited one after the other. I felt extremely confused and 
unpleasant but I suddenly began to agree with X. I told 
him in an over-polite manner he was quite right and that I 
was glad he had mentioned it. In reality I did not agree 
with him nor was I glad." A. states that on leaving the 
presence of X. the emotion reappeared many times in the 
course of the next half day and in no case did he find any 
excuse for X.'s behavior but blamed him severely. When 
the contrary reaction is resorted to as a device to gain quick 
control, it is reported as unpleasant. The emotion reap- 
pears again and is usually followed by unpleasant feelings, 
but when it is not forced upon the subject and is entered 
into spontaneously with zest, as a means of finding some 
sort of satisfaction for the emotional restraint, it is accom- 
panied by pleasant feelings. Subject A. sometimes takes 
keen delight in assuming a dignified attitude toward an of- 
fender and treating him rather friendly as if he were far 
above getting angry. He states, "I always feel I am victor, 
that I am master of the situation, and it is pleasing when I 
do this." It may be said that whenever the attributive re- 
action is satisfactory, the contrary reaction is not resorted 
to. The latter type occurs for the most part when the sub- 
ject is mentally obstructed and there seems nothing else to 
be done but to ally himself heartily with the opponent for 
the moment until the storm of his mental stress is passed. 
Subject J. in a situation, when it would be rude to display 
his anger, observes, "Each time I found myself becoming 
angry at X.'s remarks, I would take a negative attitude to- 
ward the rising impulse and laugh quite good naturedly at 
his statement. The laugh was not forced, I entered into it 
heartily. Subject C. finds himself at times suddenly laugh- 
ing at the most commonplace remarks when mildly angry 
at an offence. It is a common device of subject B. to burst 
out laughing at his behavior when mildly angry, as if he 
were merely a spectator of his emotion and not a partaker 



BEHAVIOR OF CONSCIOUSNESS 49 

of it. "I recalled the offensive behavior of X. which had 
happened two hours before. I found myself in an emotion 
of slight anger, followed by an explosive, 'Damn that X.' 
There was present much motor tension in arms and face 
muscles, then noting my angry demonstrations I laughed 
outright at myself and felt pleased. The anger disappear- 
ed entirely with the act. It is frequently reported that a 
sudden pause in the midst of unpleasant anger to introspect, 
is pleasant when attention is directed to the behavior, 
but when attention passes to the situation exciting the 
emotion, anger tends to be reinstated again. Observations 
like the following are reported: "Pausing to observe my 
emotion, my whole behavior seemed so ludicrous that I had 
to laugh." The subject may suddenly assume his oppon- 
ent's point of view, find a number of probable excuses for 
his behavior and at times actually imagine himself as cham- 
pion for his enemy against himself. He does this heartily 
at times when there is no outside compulsion and derives a 
feeling of pleasure in the act. The contrary reaction may 
be hostilely resorted to in some instances. The subject is 
aware that his aim is to humiliate his opponent by making 
him ashamed and sorry ; but it is usually reported that, after 
he has assumed the over-friendly attitude with its hostile 
intent, there is a self-satisfaction in the sudden breaking up 
of the unpleasant conscious restraint. Subject D. observes, 
"I knew I was doing the favor to make him feel ashamed; 
watching him, I saw he was not ashamed in the least but I 
continued my friendliness and felt pleased in doing it. 
There was no regret when I saw that he did not take the 
matter as I had at first wished." In the contrary reaction, 
a joke or witticism may be employed, but it has an entirely 
different aim from the joke discussed in attributive reaction. 
It lasks hostility. Its aim is friendliness, the theme is con- 
trary to the situation giving rise to anger and serves to dis- 
tract the attention from the emotion. 



50 PSYCHOLOGY AND PEDAGOGY OP ANGER 

THE INDIFFERENT REACTION 
The third class of mental reactions to anger is what has 
been called the indifferent type. It is attitudinal in charac- 
ter. The subject assumes for the time an indifferent atti- 
tude toward the situation and person exciting the emotion. 
Eleven percent of the reactions of all the subjects studied 
may be classified under this type. It occurs as one of the 
last resorts when there is nothing else to be done. If it ap- 
pears in the initial stage of anger, the emotion does not 
fully develop. It is not reported as actually pleasant but 
rather passively relieving for the time. Subject B. had re- 
ceived a piece of adverse information in a letter. He ob- 
serves, "At first, I was angry and at once threw the letter 
down on the table in an attitude of not caring anything about 
it. I felt that nothing could be done. I had really wanted 
the information badly. I threw up my hands and moved my 
body suddenly with a 'don't care' feeling." B. reports that 
he recalled the situation several times later, but the anger 
did not appear again. The same subject recalling the of- 
fensive behavior of X. and Y. became angry, and observes, 
"I found myself saying aloud, 'Oh confound them, I don't 
care anything about them,' and at once started to attend to 
something else. My saying I did not care, made me feel as 
if I did not care ; in fact now I really did not care." The 
sudden assuming of an apathetic attitude toward the devel- 
oping anger is a frequent device of subject B. A. after a 
rather prolonged emotional reaction in which he imagined 
cutting remarks and planned how he would retaliate, sud- 
denly changed his attitude, saying, "What is the use any- 
way, it is just X., I don't care anything about him, I will 
let him go his way." C. when angry at times reenforces an 
assumed attitude of indifference by saying to himself, 
"Here, you must not be bothered about such things, be a 
good sport and play the game." One at times assumes an 
attitude of accepting the situation as it is, and dropping the 
matter. 



DISAPPEARANCE OF ANGER 



CHAPTER THREE 

DISAPPEARANCE OF ANGER 

The anger consciousness is one of variability and change. 
The emotion may disappear rather suddenly with the ap- 
pearance of a new emotion or it may disappear gradually. 
There are usually fluctuating nodes of increasing and dimin- 
ishing intensity accompanying the changing direction of at- 
tention, ideational behavior, and motor and mental activity 
in general. < Attention again to the situation exciting anger 
tends to increase its intensity, if the situation from which 
it arises remains unchanged, l 

Any behavior, whether mental or motor, which changes 
the total mental situation from which anger originates, 
tends to modify the emotion itself. This total mental situa- 
tion cannot remain unchanged long. The affective process- 
es which have been aroused usually serve to redirect atten- 
tion again and again to the situation exciting anger. 'The 
aim of angry behavior may be said to be three fold, refer- 
ing to the total mental situation from which the three main 
types of anger arise ; ( I ) to enhance self-feeling which has 
been lowered; (2) to get rid of the opposing obstacle to the 
continuity of associative processes; (3) to recover from 
one's wounded sense of justice. 1 

The total feeling situation becomes modified in the course 
of the disappearance or diminution of the emotion. Anger 
which springs from a fore-period of irritable feelings dis- 
appears by a different set of ideas than from anger arising 
from a fore-period of negative self-feeling. 

Pleasantness is an important condition in the diminution 
of anger. There are but few instances that show no pleas- 
antness in some degree somewhere in the reactive stage of 
the emotion. The pleasantness ranges from momentary mild 
relief to active delight. Periods of restraint during anger 
are periods of unpleasantness. Periods of lessened restraint 

53 



54 PSYCHOLOGY AND PEDAGOGY OF ANGER 

are accompanied by relief or pleasantness. Two periods in 
the development of anger are most unpleasant, (i) The 
entire cumulative development of anger is unpleasant. It 
is a frequent observation in the immediate fore-period, "I 
wanted to get angry at somebody or something, I felt I 
would feel better if I did." (2) Often during the active 
stage of anger, there are found one or more periods of un- 
pleasant inhibition and restraint. This is often a stage of 
experiment in imagination, forseeing unpleasant results of 
too drastic behavior, inhibiting, choosing and selecting in 
the effort to discover some reaction which may successfully 
meet the emotional crisis of the moment. There are cases 
of anger with all the persons studied, which do not get be- 
yond this inhibitive unpleasant stage. Anger may be al- 
most entirely unpleasant or mostly pleasant. Some persons 
have a greater mental versatility than others in finding a 
successful expression to anger, consequently they have rela- 
tively a greater proportion of pleasantness. Under the in- 
fluence of fatigue, the ability for successful expression is les- 
sened and there is a correspondingly increased tendency to 
emotive excitation and decreased emotional control. 

When a fully successful reaction is not found, anger dies 
hard. It may become necessary to attend to something else 
voluntarily for self protection. Anger disappearing unsuc- 
cessfully tends to recur again and again, it may be. Its re- 
appearance frequently allows the unpleasant initial stage to 
be shortened or dropped entirely leaving a mildly pleasant 
experience. 

Anger disappears suddenly and pleasantly if the subject 
can gain the subjective end of the emotion. Subject J. ob- 
serves in the case of an anger arising from a feeling of irri- 
tation, "At this moment (the moment of successful expres- 
sion) I felt pleased, my anger now disappeared leaving a 
pleasant after-effect." A case from A. will illustrate fur- 
ther. A. got on the wrong street car. The conductor re- 



DISAPPEARANCE OF ANGER 55 

fused to allow him to get off at his corner of the street. He 
observes he was angry, not because he was hindered from 
getting off, but because of the insulting attitude and remark 
of the conductor, who said in a hostile manner, "Why did 
you not pay attention to what I said, this car does not stop, 
you will have to go on." A. then became angry and de- 
manded in rather severe language to have the car stopped. 
At this point the conductor changed his attitude and stopped 
with no further words. A. observes, "As I stepped off I 
had a distinct feeling of pleasantness. I felt I had been vic- 
torious. I was no longer angry. Sensations were still pre- 
sent in chest, arm and leg muscles but these were now pleas- 
ant. Upon recalling the incident, I had not the least resent- 
ment against the conductor. On the whole, I now felt glad 
the incident had occurred." 

Pleasantness may appear on the observation of the of- 
fender's failure or humiliation. C. becoming angry at X., 
who was manipulating some laboratory apparatus, observes, 
"I let him proceed rather hoping he would spoil his results. 
When I noted he was failing and observed his discomposure,. 
I felt pleased. That satisfied my anger against him at 
once. 

The imaginal humiliation and trouble coming to the of- 
fender, also increases the feeling of pleasantness md dimin- 
ishes for the moment the anger. The imaginative verbal 
or physical attacks usually allow a subject to come out vic- 
tor. W 7 hat D. observes is typical. "I imagined he was 
stunned by my attack, and the result pleased me ; that satis- 
fied my anger." 

If the offender acts friendly and accommodating, that af- 
fords a relief to the offended person and is a condition for 
the rapid disappearance of anger. F. observes, "He be- 
haved so friendly that I thanked him and felt relieved. My 
anger was now almost gone." C. became angry at X. for 
what he had interpreted as a hostile attitude. Five minutes 



56 PSYCHOLOGY AND PEDAGOGY OP ANGER 

later X. sjat down by him. C. observes, "He acted sociable 
and I felt relieved, my anger was entirely gone, in fact I 
now felt quite friendly toward him." It is also commonly 
reported that when the offender becomes submissive, it af- 
fords a relief to the subject and usually kills the emotion. 
C. observes, "After he had submitted, my anger had dis- 
appeared and I now felt a little repentant at what I had 
done." The same subject sometimes observes that he 
imagines the absent offender at whom he is angry, 
smiling and acting friendly in the usual way, and the imag- 
ined friendly attitude is a relief to the emotion. 

Anger which develops from a fore-period of negative 
self- feeling, disappears when the subject is able to acquire 
a positive feeling attitude toward the offender. It may be 
accomplished subjectively. The subject tends to lower his 
opinion of his opponent, he enjoys an idle gossip, it may be, 
at his expense, recalls ill reports he had previously heard but 
ignored, and in fact may employ a number of devices of 
imagination and make-believe. He at times tends to magni- 
fy the offender's unworthiness, and may come to the con- 
clusion that he is scarcely worth troubling about. Mental 
behavior of this sort is commonly reported to enhance self- 
feeling. On the other hand the subject may accomplish the 
same end by magnifying his own personal feelings directly 
by dwelling on his own good qualities and worth in compari- 
son with that of the offender. Such comparisons are almost 
always to the disadvantage of the opponent. Subject C, in 
a controversy with X., became angry and walked away 
when the emotion was still intense. "I now began to recall 
how insignificant he is and how important I am. He is nar- 
row, pedantic and incapable of seeing a large point of view. 
I am not so narrow. All was slightly pleasant and was ac- 
companied by a decreased intensity of my emotion. I now 
met X. and joked with him; my anger was entirely gone." 
The feeling of superiority kills anger of the type which 



DISAPPEARANCE OF ANGER 57 

arises from a fore-period of humiliation. It has already 
been indicated that when a positive feeling is maintained in 
receiving an injury, anger does not arise. The would-be 
offender if he is regarded as unworthy or unaccountable for 
his act, does not usually excite anger. The same person, 
however, may stimulate anger by a process of increased 
irritable feelings. Subject A. beginning to get angry at 
X., (a person he holds in low esteem) observes the follow- 
ing association. ''Oh, it is just X., no use in my getting 
angry at a fellow like that, he is not responsible anyway, 
and I would be foolish to be bothered by him. I had start- 
ed to ridicule him but now my emotion was gone." -»• 

A contemplated victory gives pleasure and diminishes 
anger even before the victory is attained. The emotion dis- 
appears on assuming a positive determined mental attitude, 
it may pass off in vehement resolution as to further behav- 
ior. In fact, one may begin and finish his fight through the 
meduim of ideas and have no enthusiasm left for the actual 
encounter. 

With a third condition for the disappearance of anger, 
pleasantness is present but usually in the form of mild re- 
lief. Positive self-feeling is not so clearly marked in con- 
sciousness. The subject looks at the offender's point of 
view, finds excuses for his behavior, elevates his opinion it 
may be of him. A new 7 idea is added to the mental situa- 
tion exciting anger which entirely alters the feeling content, 
and consequently anger disappears. Subject I, observes, 
''When I finally concluded that X. meant well, my anger was 
almost gone.'' G. resentful at X. because he did not speak 
to him states, ''I recalled suddenly that he is cross-eyed and 
probably did not see me. I said to myself, 'He is a good 
fellow and is friendly toward me all right.' My emotion 
was now gone." B. mildly angry at X. and Y. for intrud- 
ing upon him, observes the following soliloquy. "No, they 
have more right here than I have. This room is for people 



58 PSYCHOLOGY AND PEDAGOGY OP ANGER 

to converse in rather than for one man to occupy alone. My 
anger was now decreased but not entirely gone. "Even a 
tentative excuse for the offender's behavior allays anger 
temporarily. The emotion may last for several days, ap- 
pearing at intervals, and with a sudden introduction of a 
new idea providing an adequate excuse for the offence, the 
condition exciting the emotion will be completely changed. 

Anger diminishes and disappears more frequently in the 
change of attention than by any other one condition. A 
pause in the midst of anger to attend to one's mental behav- 
ior affords a diminution of the affective process. It is often 
reported as amusing when a subject suddenly ceases attend- 
ing to the situation exciting the emotion and observes his 
mental behavior; laughter at this point is often reported. 
Close attention to the act of managing the irritating or 
humiliating incident, allows a rather gradual diminution of 
anger. Anger does not arise when the subject is rigidly 
attending to the damage done, but only when he begins to 
feel the damage as humiliating, irritating or as contrary to 
justice. One subject hums or sings when angry. A joke 
or witticism will break the crust of conscious tension allow- 
ing the attention to be distracted elsewhere. 

The subject may suddenly assume an apathetic attitude 
toward the whole incident and kill the emotion at least tem- 
porarily. The mental situation from which anger arises, 
is one contrary to indifference, in fact, the lack of indiffer- 
ence is one of the essential characteristics of the fore-condi- 
tion of anger, and consequently when this attitude is pres- 
ent, anger is cut off. 

A resolution or a settled judgment has a relieving effect. 
Whenever the subject comes to a definite conclusion wheth- 
er it refers to the emotional situation or a contemplated mode 
of behavior toward the offender, there is reported a sudden 
drop in the intensity of the emotion, even though the attitude 
is but a tentative and temporary one. The reason for this 



DISAPPEARANCE OF ANGER 59 

is evidently that such a mental attitude is contrary to the 
immediate mental situation from which anger arises. Anger 
springs from the fact that there is lacking a definite mental 
attitude as to what should be done during the reactive stage 
of the emotion. One of the most efficient controls is to have 
a well planned reaction to meet the emotional crisis before it 
appears; when the injury occurs, if there is a preparedness 
as to what should be done, even though the response is but 
a subjective one purely attitudinal in its nature, anger fails 
to develop to its intense stage. 

SUCCESSFUL DISAPPEARANCE 

The success with which the emotion of anger disappears 
is a matter of wide individual difference with the persons 
studied. With some the reporting of the emotion from the 
introspection notes tended to reinstate the emotion. One 
subject was frequently disturbed by the reappearance of the 
emotion during the report. In one instance he refused to 
report to the writer for three days afterward. He reports 
he could not recall the situation without the reappearance of 
the anger in its unpleasant form. Other persons could 
rarely reinstate an emotion in any unpleasant form over 
night. At times the anger was reinstated in its pleasant 
aspect. Sometimes a feeling of exaltation was displayed. 
The subject showed he enjoyed recalling the emotion. 
Imagined and carefully devised schemes of retaliation were 
often rehearsed with pleasure. Again the observation 
would be a feeling of indifference, as something past and 
finished. Often the statement was given, "The whole thing 
seems ludicrous and amusing to me now." 

It is rather pleasing to recall the situation exciting anger 
when the original emotion is short-circuited, as it were, al- 
lowing a pleasurable, gossipy vituperation against the of- 
fender without the initially unpleasant stage of anger. In 
fact the subject may re-experience a little of the unpleasant 



6* PSYCHOLOGY AND PEDAGOGY OF ANGER 

humiliation through imaginative stimulus, if the pleasantly 
reactive stage is successful enough to compensate. If the 
subject is aware he has a sympathetic hearer, it is far easier 
to pass over the initially unpleasant stage of the reinstated 
anger and enjoy a hostile, gossipy reaction. The writer in 
the course of the study became so intimately acquainted with 
the private emotional life of the subjects studied and had 
been a sympathetic listener of the emotional experiences so 
long, that after the period of observation had ended, he 
would find himself the recipient of emotional confidences 
which the subjects took pleasure in relating to him. Says 
one on reporting, "I really was not interested so much in 
the scientific side of this emotion as I was to tell you of my 
resentment, and as I look over it now, I am really aware 
that I assumed a scientific interest as a means of gaining full 
sympathy and giving me full freedom to speak everything 
in mind." Another subject says, "I went to tell X. for I 
believed he would get angry too and I hoped that he 
would." The same situation does not usually allow anger 
to continue to reappear in its unpleasant form, for repeated 
appearance tends to eliminate the active unpleasant stage. 
An emotion of anger which has been unsuccessfully ex- 
pressed may continue to reappear in consciousness again 
and again. Crowded out, it will suddenly return at times 
by chance associations. It may become so insistent that it 
is an unpleasant distraction from business affairs and the 
subject must find some sort of reaction to satisfy it. F. 
observes, "I could not do my work. Just as I would get 
started, the idea would reappear suddenly and I would find 
myself angry, tending to think cutting remarks and plan- 
ning what I should do. Each time I tried to escape from 
it, it would come back again. Finally I determined delib- 
erately to get rid of it. I recalled all the good qualities of 
X., what favors he had bestowed upon me and in fact felt 
quite friendly toward him. Before I had finished, the 



DISAPPEARANCE OP ANGER 6l 

anger had disappeared and did not return. Later, as I re- 
called the situation incidentally, I felt indifferent toward it." 
Such deliberate behavior is unusual. The reaction to an 
emotion is mostly involuntary. In many instances, when 
emotion is prolonged, it is much like a trial and error pro- 
cess, one reaction after another is tried out in imagination 
until a rather successful one is found. This re-appearance 
of an emotion when it has been repressed gives opportunity 
for a new trial and mode of attack. 

There are two general conditions under which anger dis- 
appears most successfully. First, if the mental situation 
from which anger arises is changed directly by the addition 
of a new idea that gives an entirely new meaning content 
to the incident so that it will no longer be humiliating or ir- 
ritating, as when the subject can thoroughly come to believe 
that the motives of the opponent's offense were not hostile 
but friendly, anger disappears rather successfully with no 
unpleasant after effects ; the anger is cut off directly at its 
source. • To illustrate, C.'s anger at X. which had been a 
source of unpleasant disturbance for two days, completely 
disappeared when he was finally informed that what X. did 
was not meant as personal. The subject at times finds him- 
self trying to assume a little of the attitude of make-believe. 
He really wants to believe the offender meant well. I A sec- 
ond successful condition for the removal of anger is when 
the subject reacts so that he feels he has fully mastered his 
opponent. He has given full restitution for the offense and 
feels a pleasureable satisfaction in the results. \ Feeling is 
an essential factor, whatever the method employed. If a 
feeling of complete victorious satisfaction is accomplished in 
connection with the disappearance of anger it is usually suc- 
cessful. The circumstances are rare in which the direct ver- 
bal or physical attack would be fully satisfactory. A sub- 
stitution in the form of hostile wit, teasing, irony, or it may 
be a favor bestowed with a hostile intent, may accomplish 



62 PSYCHOLOGY AND PEDAGOGY OF ANGER 

the same result as far as feelings are concerned and com- 
pletely satisfy the anger. The imagined victory, or a make- 
believe one, may serve the same purpose. 
I The most unsuccessful condition for the disappearance of 
anger is one commonly used in emergencies — that of chang- 
ing the attention and avoiding the offensive idea. Intense 
anger usually returns when diminished in this manner. The 
attitude of indifference and over-politeness usually serves 
only as a temporary device of removal for the purpose of 
expeditious control. Mere repression is not always most 
successful. » 



CONSCIOUS AFTER-EFFECTS 



CHAPTER FOUR 

CONSCIOUS AFTER-EFFECTS 

Anger has an important influence upon mental life and 
behavior long after the emotion itself has disappeared. The 
functional effect of anger may be disclosed in a period after 
the emotion proper has disappeared. Other emotions may 
immediately follow anger, such as pity, regret,, sorrow, joy, 
shame, remorse, love and fear. Feelings and tendencies are 
left over which the subject is fully aware are directly related 
to the previous emotion. For purposes of study, the period 
after the emotion will be divided into two parts; first, that 
immediately after the emotion has disappeared, and second, 
the more or less remote period of indefinite time. The reac- 
tion while the emotion is present, and the way in which the 
emotion disappears, are conditions which determine to a 
large extent what will consciously appear after the emotion 
has passed away. With the aim of finding out what mental 
factors follow in the wake of anger, the subjects were in- 
structed to keep account of any sort of consciousness of 
which they were aware as referring either directly or indi- 
rectly to the previous emotion observed. 

Pity is frequently associated with anger. Mild anger may 
merge into pity at the point where attention changes from 
the situation exciting anger to the effects of angry behavior 
on the offender. Pity often follows the imaginal humilia- 
tion of the person committing the offense. It follows more 
readily when the emotion is against children, servants, de- 
pendents or persons with whom there is close intimacy. A 
kind of self-pity is sometimes associated with anger. With 
one subject, a mildly pleasant self-pity would frequently fol- 
low anger at an injury. At times there is found a curious 
mixture of anger and self-pity. H. observes, "At times I 
would be angry, then at other times I would find myself tak- 
ing a peculiar pleasure in rehearsing my injuries and feeling 

6S 



66 PSYCHOLOGY AND PEDAGOGY Otf ANGER 

rather pitiful for one who had been mistreated like myself." 
An observation from C. will illustrate the suddenness of the 
transition from mild anger to pity. Angry at a clerk for a 
slight offense, he observes, "As I turned away I said to my- 
self, r wish that fellow would lose his place/ but at once I 
felt a little pity for him and said, 'No, that would be too 
bad, he has a hard time putting up with all these people.' " 
Subject A., angry at a child observes, "I found myself tend- 
ing to punish him, I saw his face, it looked innocent and 
trusting, that restrained me, I now thought, 'Poor little fel- 
low, he does not know any better/ and I felt a pity for him 
to think that such a person as myself had the correcting of 
him." 

Shame may follow in the wake of anger. It arises rather 
suddenly in the disappearing stage of the emotion when at- 
tention is directed to the results of the angry behavior just 
finished. Both shame and pity, following anger, are usually 
a condition of immunity against the reappearance of the 
same emotion. After shame appears, a reaction usually fol- 
lows in the effort to compensate in some fashion. Subject 
C. observes, "Becoming aware of my act and how it ap- 
peared, I now felt ashamed and humiliated at what I had 
said. In a few minutes I brought it about to offer him a 
favor and felt pleased when it was accepted. I had really 
t>een trying to convince him that I was not angry, and now 
felt that I was doing it." Subject C. observes, "I noted that 
they saw I was angry and at once I felt ashamed. I now be- 
gan to laugh the matter off as if trying to show I was not." 
At times during mild anger when the emotion is displayed 
too impulsively and the bounds of caution have been over- 
stepped, exposing one's self to a too easy attack from an op- 
ponent, an uncomfortable feeling of chagrin appears. The 
anger may be displayed in too crude a fashion, consequently 
an advantage is given to the opponent which was not in- 
tended. Anxiety that the opponent may take the hostile 



CONSCIOUS AFTBR-E^FSCTS 67 

thrust too seriously or fear of the consequence, may sud- 
denly displace anger. Instead of an offending person, the 
same person now suddenly becomes one exciting anxiety or 
fear. 

A fourth affective condition of the immediate after-period 
of anger is an active pleasantness. Anger disappears and 
joy takes its place. The condition, originally exciting anger, 
is no longer able to reproduce the emotion as the subject 
has become the victor and the offense is recompensed. The 
goal of anger from its impulsive and feeling side is to be 
found in the pleasurable victorious affection in the after- 
period of the emotion. Any anger possesses possibilities of 
pleasantness in its after-stage. If an objective victory can- 
not be had, a subjective one plays the part of a surrogate. 
The processes of imagination, make-believe and disguise, as 
previously discussed, become devices directly referring to the 
aim of pleasurable feelings in the after-period of anger. The 
motivation is to avoid the unpleasant emotions and feelings 
in the wake of anger and acquire the feeling of victory. The 
tendency to humor and jocular behavior after anger is some- 
times observed. The subject tends to recall his feelings of 
success and relive them, self-confidence and positive self- 
feelings are increased. 

The feeling of friendliness toward the offender may fol- 
low anger which has been successfully expressed. Spinoza 
was right when he said, "An act of offense may indirectly 
give origin to love." It is frequently observed in the after- 
period of anger, "I felt more friendly toward him after my 
emotion had disappeared." In fact an unusual friendliness 
with a desire to bestow favors was often observed. We like 
a man better after we have been angry at him in a success- 
ful manner. The emotional attitude is entirely changed to- 
ward an opponent who has been overcome, if he allows the 
victory. It is the unreasoning person who never becomes 
aware of his defeat, against whom hate follows anger. 



68 PSYCHOLOGY AND PEDAGOGY 0? ANGER 

Feelings of unpleasant irritation usually follow anger 
when social or other conditions prevent adequate expression. 
These feelings seem to be the medium by which the situa- 
tion exciting anger is repeatedly recalled. The emotion 
which appears from the imagined situation usually does not 
leave such intense unpleasant feelings, as the subject tends 
to attain in his deliberate moments, to some degree, an inner 
victory over his opponent, or to find an adequate excuse for 
his behavior. Either of these reactions may be successful 
enough to exclude irritable feelings in the after-period. 
Irritation after controlled anger is the medium for the so- 
called transfer of the emotion from an offending to an un- 
offending object, which is so often observed. In the after- 
period of irritation, it is a rather common observation of 
the subjects, "I was looking for something or somebody at 
whom I could get angry." "I felt I wanted to hurt some- 
body." In fact irritation in the after-period becomes an 
essentially affective element in a situation from which may 
arise a new anger of a different type. The first anger may 
have arisen from a fore-period of humiliation, while the 
latter is from that of irritation. 

There is evidence that the affective state in the after- 
period of anger has a compensating relation to the emotion 
that has just passed, not unlike the compensation role played 
between the anger proper and the feeling fore-stage from 
which it arises. The reactive stage of anger tends to over- 
compensate for the unpleasant feelings of irritation and 
humiliation in the fore-period of anger by either increasing 
the pleasantness or diminishing unpleasantness. If the re- 
action is incomplete and has not adequately met the emo- 
tional crisis of the moment, irritation may follow with a 
tendency to continue further the emotion, or if the reaction 
has gone too far, it is paid for by the appearance in the 
after-stage of other emotions of social origin, such as fear, 
shame, pity, etc. The feeling of relief occurs after the ex- 



CONSCIOUS AFTER-EFFECTS 69 

pression has nearly restored consciousness to about the 
same affective level as before the beginning of the emotion ; 
but with active pleasure, a higher affective level has been 
attained and the subject feels he was glad to have been 
angry. There is a heightened effect in the affective 
state following anger ; a sort of over-compensation, which is 
a little out of proportion to the behavior apart from the 
anger itself. If the after-period is one of pleasantness, the 
feeling is increased far more because of what the subject 
has done during the emotion, for it is evident if the same 
mental processes and behavior occur without anger, the 
pleasantness is less. Joy is a good example of the intensi- 
fication of the emotion in the after-period of anger which is 
out of proportion to the idea stimulating it. The relation 
between the fore-period, the anger proper, and the after- 
period is so intimate in anger that the writer has had it re- 
peatedly impressed upon him in making the present study, 
that to solve some of the important problems of our emo- 
tional life, this relation must be taken into account. The 
entire gamut of the emotional consciousness for each emo- 
tion must be studied from the initial feeling stage to the 
termination of the conscious content after the emotion has 
disappeared. The emotions do not appear as separate ef- 
fective entities, but have an intimate relation which is im- 
portant in the study of their psychology. 

Mild anger may leave the subject in a state of curiosity. 
A feeling of doubt as to the motivation of the offender may 
appear, and curiosity follows with an awareness of a ten- 
dency for anger to reappear if the occasion should arise. 
After the emotion has passed, the subject is aware of ten- 
dencies or attitudes, referring directly to the mental behav- 
ior, which were present during the emotion. An attitude 
of indifference toward the offender and offending situation 
follows what has been called the indifferent type of reac- 
tion. The emotion of anger may leave the subject in a state 



yo PSYCHOLOGY AND PEDAGOGY OF ANGER 

of confidence toward himself, positive self-feelings have been 
reached as a result of the entire experience. On the other 
hand, slightly reduced self-feelings may follow if the reac- 
tion to anger has been unsuccessful. It may leave the sub- 
ject in either a heightened or a lowered opinion of the of- 
fender. A previously friendly interest in the person com- 
mitting the offense may be increased or otherwise. A feel- 
ing of amusement at one's behavior when recalling it after 
the emotion has disappeared, is often reported. The sub- 
ject stands off, as it were, and views his own response to 
anger as if he were a spectator rather than a partaker of his 
emotion. What the subject did when angry seems so in- 
congruous with his mental state after the emotion' has dis- 
appeared, that it strikes him as ludicrous. Laughter and 
amusement frequently appear in the recall of the emotional 
situation. 

An attitude of caution often follows. After a period of 
stressed inhibition, in which the evil consequences of a too 
impulsive behavior have been pre-perceived, there is assumed 
an attitude of control and at the same time a readiness to re- 
spond to a suitable stimulus. Anger may leave in its place 
an attitude of greater determination to make one's point, or 
if the emotion has been entirely satisfactory, the subject 
takes the attitude that the score has been settled. An atti- 
tude of belief or conviction as to a future course of action 
toward a like offense may follow in the period after anger, 
which is a direct result of the conclusion reached when the 
emotion was present. Mild anger may have changed the 
feeling tone but little, but leaves the subject primed and 
ready to respond more quickly to another offense. The re- 
sult of anger may be purely a practical attitude as to what 
should be done in such cases with little marked feeling ac- 
companying it. The subject is left not in a fighting atti- 
tude, but in one of preparedness to prevent the offense re- 
curring. It is usually necessary in the after-period to re- 



CONSCIOUS AFTER-EFFECTS Jl 

construct or modify the revengeful plans or conclusions 
which were formed when the emotion was intense. What 
seemed so justifiable during the emotion proper, after it has 
disappeared becomes strikingly inopportune. If the emo- 
tion has disappeared unsuccessfully and resentful feelings 
still linger, the subject wishes to execute the plans previously 
formed; but in the act of doing it, he usually finds difficul- 
ties of which he was not aware when the emotion was in- 
tense. An instance from A. will illustrate. He had been 
intensely angry at X. and had planned to tell him his opin- 
ion of his conduct. By the time he had opportunity to 
speak, the emotion had subsided. He observes, "I had at 
this point a severe struggle with myself. I wanted to tell 
him what I had planned; I felt I was inconsistent if I did 
not. On the other hand I was slightly apprehensive, not of 
X., but of making myself ludicrous. I recognized what I 
had not before, that I was not fully justified, and partially 
excused him for what he had done. But the tendency to do 
what I had planned still persisted, and I felt I would give 
anything if I could do it." He reports further that although 
the emotion was now fear, at this point "the tendency to 
execute the plan, formed during the anger, persisted for 
about fifteen minutes of intense struggle with myself before 
it disappeared." Tendencies in the after-period of the emo- 
tion, which refer to conclusions or resolutions reached dur- 
ing its active stage, at times, when they appear are passed 
over lightly and even with amusement. 

The effects of anger may extend far beyond the period 
immediately after the emotion has disappeared. The more 
remote after-period, after the immediate effects have passed 
off or been modified, have important results in our mental 
life. The momentum, acquired during anger by determined 
emotional outburst, may be a reenforcement to volitional ac- 
tion and may allow old habits to be more quickly broken 
down and new ones formed. If an error has been repeat- 



72 PSYCHOLOGY AND PEDAGOGY OP ANGER 

edly made with increased irritation, till the subject has 
been thoroughly aroused to anger at himself, the tendency 
to repeat the error is usually successfully forestalled by an 
attitude of caution and determination following the emotion. 
The possible failure may be prevented by mild anger at 
the imagined humiliating result, which increases volitional 
action to a point insuring success, and a new momentum is 
acquired which may have far reaching influences. Slight 
habitual mistakes, like errors in typewriting or speaking, 
repeated forgetting of details, and social blunders, are re- 
ported as cured by anger. 

Mild prolonged anger which has not had a fully satis- 
factory expression may leave in its wake a fighting attitude 
which if transferred into work enables the subject to ac- 
quire new levels of activity. A record from C. will illus- 
trate. He observes, "I would not allow myself to be deject- 
ed, but have planned to fight and dig into it like everything. 
These emotions are the greatest stimuli I have. I get 
angry, then I want to get down to work for all I am worth." 
On the other hand, anger which has been successfully ex- 
pressed may be followed by a feeling of satisfaction in the 
result and an attitude of success, which gives momentum for 
increased volitional action in the future. 

There is usually a residuum from intense anger which may 
appear long after the anger has consciously disappeared. 
The recall of the situation which had previously excited 
anger may have little or no feeling; merely indifference is 
present. Sometimes feelings of resentment and dislike are 
observed, while at other times, there is amusement. It fre- 
quently happens that while the situation which has previ- 
ously excited the emotion may be accompanied by indiffer- 
ence upon its being recalled either voluntarily or involun- 
tarily, there follows an emotion of dislike and hate. The 
incident itself may be almost forgotten, or not recalled at 
all, but the result of anger is to be observed in tendencies 



CONSCIOUS AFTER-EFFECTS 73 

and emotional dispositions left in the wake of the emotion. 
An over-critical attitude, with something of a gossipy ten- 
dency and hostile suspicion in which the bounds of justice 
are partly ignored, may long continue to reappear after the 
emotion itself has passed away and the situation has been 
forgotten. It is rather probable that a single strong out- 
burst of anger does not leave the hostile emotional disposi- 
tion in its wake. ^It is usually the mild anger, preceded by 
much feeling of humiliation and anger which tends to recur 
again and again till it has settled to a hostile disposition to- 
ward the offender. It is reported in some instances to refer 
to the offender's way of talking, laughing, manner of walk- 
ing, his mode of dressing; in fact any chance idea of the 
offender's behavior may be sufficient to allow a feeling of 
dislike and disgust to appear. 

It may be said that anger which disappears in an unsatis- 
factory manner leaves an emotional disposition which pos- 
sesses potentialities of both pleasant and unpleasant feel- 
ings. Some persons seem to derive much satisfaction in 
picking the sores of their unhealed resentments; little acts 
of revenge and retaliation are suddenly hit upon ; even hate 
may have its pleasures. Small acts of revenge and retalia- 
tion are observed with an affective state which cannot be 
called anger, but the subject is aware that it refers to the 
anger which is passed. One subject became severely angry 
at his grocer and went to trade with another merchant near 
by. He states that on several occasions just after the anger, 
when buying at another place he felt pleased at the other 
man's having lost his trade. Once he observes, "I believe 
I bought several things I did not need, I felt I was retaliat- 
ing and enjoyed it." The emotional disposition following 
anger may be a source of rather intense enjoyment. Laugh- 
ter and mirth are observed with the appearance of an idea 
that has humiliated the offender. In such cases the laughter 
is purely spontaneous with no recall of anger. Subject J. 



74 PSYCHOLOGY AND PEDAGOGY OF ANGER 

broke out laughing when told that X. was on unfavorable 
terms with Y. His laughter, he observes, referred to a 
resentment a few days before against X. In fact laughter 
frequently springs rather suddenly from the mental dis- 
position which has followed from anger. Such cases afford 
another instance of the close intimacy of our emotions with 
each other. The residuum of potential feelings from an 
emotion of anger appears in the form of less active pleas- 
antness. 

There is a relation between the immediate after-period of 
anger and the more remote one that is important. If anger 
is immediately followed by such emotions as pity, shame, 
regret or fear, any positive tendency left over in the remote 
after-period from the emotion itself is apparently lacking. 
There is, however, a negative effect. The subject is im- 
mune to re-experience the same emotion from the same emo- 
tional situation again, but anger which has disappeared with 
unpleasant feelings may tend to recur in a rather prolonged 
after-period and may finally settle into an emotional dis- 
position and mental attitude which play an important role 
in behavior and later feelings. It seems to be true, that 
when anger disappears consciously in such a manner that 
the subject is aware that his wishes have not been satisfied 
and the disappearance is followed by unpleasant feelings, the 
immediate after-period is rather barren as compared with the 
out-cropping which appears in a more remote period after 
the emotion. In anger, when sudden control is required, the 
subject is forced to attend to something else or react con- 
trary to the emotional tendency to save himself a later 
humiliation. The immediate after-period is usually one of 
unpleasantness and tension. Under such circumstances, the 
tendency to recur again and again is characteristic and if, in 
some later recurrence or expression through the imaginative 
process, it does not end satisfactorily, it may settle down to 
an emotional disposition and mental attitude. 



CONSCIOUS AFTER-EFFECTS 75 

Anger that arises from a fore-period of irritation in 
which the subject suddenly bursts out with emotion may 
have an immediate after-period of irritation, but it leaves 
little in the remote after-period; the subject is aware that 
the emotion is finished. Anger which ends with active 
pleasantness of victory leaves an attitude of confidence and 
success toward the situation which has excited the emotion. 
There is little tendency for the emotion, disappearing in this 
fashion, to reappear except in its pleasant stage. With a 
consciousness of complete victory in the immediate after- 
period, there is established an attitude of positive self-feel- 
ing and confidence toward the situation exciting the emo- 
tion so that a practical immunity against the reappearance 
of anger in its unpleasant stage is reached as a negative re- 
sult of the emotion. There are wide individual differences 
in the ability of the subjects studied to allow anger to dis- 
appear, leaving a pleasant after-period. C. reports but few 
instances in which his anger disappeared with a fully satis- 
factory result. He consequently has a wealth of emotional 
dispositions and mental attitudes following anger. On the 
other hand F. and E., whose anger emotions are less in- 
tense, are early able either to attain an inner victory or to 
react contrary to the emotion and leave an after-period of 
immunity against its reappearance from the same mental sit- 
uation. Hence the tendencies and dispositions left over in 
the after-period of their anger are less. E.'s dislikes are 
short lived. It is probable that some subjects have acquired 
the habit of shortening their emotions of anger, short-cutting 
the unpleasant period of restraint and early acquiring 
the after-period of relief, humor or it may be indifference, 
before the emotion has developed far. 

Classifications. Anger might be classified according to a 
number of schemes that would serve the purpose of empha- 
sizing its characteristics. From the standpoint of feeling, 
anger might be classed as pleasant or unpleasant. Some 



7D PSYCHOLOGY AND PEDAGOGY OP ANGER 

emotions of anger are observed to be almost entirely pleas- 
ant from their early beginning including their final ending. 
Other cases have fluctuating pleasant and unpleasant stages. 
There are few instances of anger that have no flash of pleas- 
antness anywhere, in some degree before the emotion is 
finally completed. The unsatisfactorily expressed emotion 
is almost entirely unpleasant. Even anger of this kind 
usually shows some flash of pleasantness or relief at the 
moment of the angry outbrust. 

Secondly, anger might be classified as exciting or calm. 
The exciting anger has greater tension during the period of 
the emotion proper. There is usually less co-ordination and 
greater intensity of feeling which may be either pleasant or 
unpleasant. The motor reactions are more prominent than 
the mental reactions. On the other hand, calm anger usu- 
ally has a longer observable fore and after-period of the emo- 
tion. Mental processes are intensified, the motor expression 
is correspondingly less. 

Anger may be classified according to its function. The 
emotion may be merely an end in itself. It relieves the ten- 
sion of unpleasant feelings. It is purgative in its effect in 
removing an unpleasant mental situation. The underlying 
purpose of such anger is not to increase volitional action, in 
fact, it may disturb coordination to any purposive end. This 
type serves primarily to remove the tension of unpleasant ac- 
cumulations of feelings in some act of expression. If suc- 
cessful in its purpose, it may have an indirect hygenic effect 
on mental action. Further, anger may be of a kind which 
intensifies volitional action, accomplishes work, and serves 
the end of survival. A residuum in mental attitude and 
emotional disposition follows, which has possibilities either 
of morbidity or a source of energy which is sublimated into 
work. 

Anger may be classified genetically on the basis of senti- 
ments which are violated in its origin. Anger whick 



CONSCIOUS AFTER-EJECTS ?] 

springs from a thwarting of desires is primary in its origin. 
This is the usual type of anger of young children and ani- 
mals. Anger which has its source in the self-feelings, such 
as the sentiments of honor and self respect and in social feel- 
ings, of injustice, of fairness, are genetically later in their 
development. 

Types. Three rather definite types appear. First is 
anger which rises from a fore-period of irritable feelings. 
It develops by a cumulative process of irascible feelings. 
through a series of stimuli till the point of anger is sud- 
denly reached. An idea is present at the point of anger 
which serves as a vehicle of expression. It may be an idea 
not directly associated with the situation exciting the emo- 
tion. In fact an apparently irrelevant idea may break the 
crust of unpleasant feeling tension and serve as an objective 
reference for the emotion. Anger of this type is scattered. 
It is not necessary that the emotion be referred to the actual 
thwarting idea, it frequently refers to inanimate objects and 
often arises from the irritation accompanying pain. The 
active period of this type of emotion is mostly voco-motor 
tension and reaction of larger muscles. The immediate 
after-period may be a feeling of relief, irascible irritation, or 
other emotions such as pity, shame, regret and fear. Its in- 
creased volitional action may establish a mental attitude of 
caution and determination against a future thwarting when 
it is finished. A new emotion may arise however from the 
same background of irritation. The after effects of an 
emotion of this type are shallow and easily forgotten. It 
does not leave hate or dislike in its wake, there is nothing 
left over for revengeful behavior. 

A second type of anger is predetermined by another sort 
of mental disposition. Self-feelings are its source. An 
idea excites negative self-reeling and anger follows as a re- 
action with the purpose of restoring positive feelings of self. 
It usually has a greater proportion of pleasantness than the 



7& PSYCHOLOGY AND PEDAGOGY OF ANGER 

type described above. Its end is to attain pleasantness in 
some form of positive self-feeling, and when that is suc- 
cessfully reached the emotion disappears. Any idea from a 
subjective or objective source which intensifies positive feel- 
ings of self, tends to diminish emotion of this type. The 
thwarting of a desire, due to the damage and inconvenience 
done, is insignificant as compared with the thrust that one's 
pride and self-respect have received. In the type above, 
there is thwarting of desire; while in this type, there is 
humiliation. In fact in the latter type, serious inconven- 
ience may be suffered in the effort to heal a wounded self 
respect. Anger of this type is not so indefinite in its ob- 
jective reference. It has direct reference to an offender be- 
fore the point of anger has been reached, and another person 
or object cannot be substituted with any degree of satisfac- 
tion. Anger of this type leaves an important residuum after 
the emotion has disappeared in the form of other affective 
processes, in tendencies, mental attitudes and dispositions, 
some of which have possibilities of morbidity, others mere 
pleasantness or sublimation into work. 

A third type of anger is that which springs from social 
sentiments involving justice and fairness. It has little un- 
pleasant fore-period and arises suddenly without the initial 
cumulative feeling development which is usual with the 
other types described. The point of anger is more readily 
reached ; the emotion is nearer the surface as if it were 
ready for a sudden rise. The origin of anger of this type 
is not unlike anger which springs rather suddenly from an 
emotional disposition left over from the second type de- 
scribed above. The expression of the emotion in this type 
is less restrained, it is usually reported as pleasant through- 
out. While anger of this type is sensitive to justice and 
fairness, the two types above may grossly disregard these 
sentiments. In its wake is often observed the tendency to 
reappear. The after-period has not the possibilties of so 



CONSCIOUS AFTER-EJECTS 79 

intense pleasure as the second type above, nor of morbidity, 
nor of a disposition capable of being sublimated into work. 
The three types above may occur in a rather pure form 
but frequently they are mixed. When desire has been 
thwarted or pride has been wounded, a sense of miscarried 
justice or fairness with reference to self, intensifies the 
emotion. In addition to lowered self-feeling, the social 
sentiment of justice and fairness may re-enforce the irasci- 
ble feelings or negative feelings of self. At times make-be- 
lieve of offended fairness is assumed to justify the angry 
behavior, and consequently increases the intensity and al- 
lows pleasurable expression when the subject is vaguely 
aware that the real cause is his own selfish pride which has 
been wounded. 



EDUCATONAL FUNCTION 



CHAPTER FIVE 

EDUCATIONAL FUNCTION 
From the present study, anger may be said to have a two 
fold functional meaning. First it intensifies volitional ac- 
tion in a useful direction. Second, viewed from the men- 
tal conditions under which it occurs, it may be a super- 
fluous affectivity and is largely an end in itself. These 
two functions are not to be separated. In fact any single 
emotion of anger in its different stages of reaction may be 
merely hedonic, it may serve a directly useful purpose or it 
may be both. These two functional aspects of anger are the 
basis for pedagogical conclusions. 

Sublimation. Anger in a modified form has been the 
theme of the poet and artist. With its running mate fear, 
it has played an important role in religion. Primitive magic 
with its self assertive coercion of the supernatural, is not 
unlike anger. The curse prayer of backward religion is 
motivated by resentment. A deity with an irascible temper 
like that of the ancient Hebrews suggests the role of right- 
eous indignation in the discipline of the soul. Plato* held 
that anger is at the foundation of the organization of the 
State. Ribot ( 16) has suggested that it is at the basis of 
justice. More recently Bergson writes, "No society can 
reach civilization unless throughout its members, there exists 
the nervous organization which supports the sentiment of 
anger and hostility against criminals; and this physical or- 
ganization is the foundation of what we call our moral 
code." President Hall (10), James (13), and Dewey (5) 
have suggested that much of the best work of the world 
and the great deeds of valor have been done by anger. Dr. 
Hall states, "A large part of education is to teach men to be 
angry aright, — it should be one aim of pedagogy to show 

*The Republic 

83 



84 PSYCHOLOGY AND PEDAGOGY OF ANGER 

how the powers of the soul should be utilized. — Man has 
powers of resentment which should be hitched onto and 
allowed to do good and profitable work. We should keep 
alive our emotions and allow them to do our labor." (From 
lecture notes.) It has been suggested by Wundt (22), 
James (13) and Stanley (17) that the function of anger 
is to increase volitional action. The latter author writes, 
"At some point in the course of evolution, anger comes in 
as a stimulant to aggressive willed action. Some favored 
individual first attained the power of getting mad, in vio- 
lently attacking his fellows and so attaining sustenance 
likely in the struggle for food." The same. author further 
writes, "We take it then that it was a most momentous day 
in the progress of mind when anger was first achieved and 
some individuals really got mad." 

Education has to do with the function of anger in human 
needs, in growth and development and in mental hygiene. 
Ethics has at times advocated the elimination of anger as if 
it were a noxious product. From a pedagogical view, it 
should be cultivated and excited aright. The familiar mor- 
al exhortations, "Let not the sun go down on your wrath," 
"Love your enemies and do good to those that hate you/' 
and others like them, are in accord with some satisfactory 
individual reactions to anger from the feeling side, which 
have been cited; but their universal application would not 
always serve the purpose of ethics. In pedagogical prac- 
tice, they would fall short. A good healthy resentment is, 
at times, a good thing and should be kept alive. The emo- 
tion, if it works, must not die out too satisfactorily at the 
eost of real effort. There should be a working resi- 
duum for the time when it is needed. An injury 
may be forgiven too quickly and resentment given up too 
easily. A healthy fighting attitude, increased caution and 
willed action turned info productive work is often subverted 
for an immediate satisfactory ending of the emotion. There 



EDUCATIONAL FUNCTION 85 

are none of the subjects studied but observe this wholesome 
effect of anger at times. Anger may disappear successfully 
and satisfactorily on the side of the feelings. The subject 
may attain the full sense of victory by a number of devices 
of make-believe, substitution, disguise, etc. An inner vic- 
tory may be a good thing. In fact, all subjects would, at 
times, resort to imaginative processes motivated by the feel- 
ing and impulsive side of the emotion. A subjective satis- 
faction may in fact save the day, clear the mental atmos- 
phere, so to speak, and allow mental life to continue along 
its habitual lines. On the other hand, a subjective victory 
may become too easy. On the verge of defeat, victory is at 
times imagined which takes the place of real volition. The 
fight may be carried too far through the medium of ideas 
leaving little enthusiasm for actual effort. A too easy habit 
of excusing the offender at times serves an unprofitable 
end. Anger should not be cut off too near its beginning by 
finding excuses too readily for the offender or offending 
situation. It should at least be allowed to get a little above 
the initial feeling stage to keep the emotional life alive or 
there is danger of lapsing into obliviousness to essential 
rights ; mental life becomes too prosaic and commonplace, 
on a plateau with no capacity to acquire new levels. 

A second point of which the writer is convinced, is that in 
order to study the emotions, especially the deep seated pri- 
mary emotions like fear and anger, it is necessary to take 
into account the finer working of the emotion in its feeling 
and impulsive stage of development and disappearance. In 
fact, the milder tenuous emotions of anger are markedly 
important from the educational side as well as psycholog- 
ically. The normal function of the emotion is better ex- 
emplified in the less intense experiences. Anger, as it is 
usually thought of, is the emotion in its excited uncontrolled 
stage. Anger, sublimated into keener intellectual and willed 
action, is no less anger though its affective side is less in- 



86 PSYCHOLOGY AND PEDAGOGY OP ANGER 

tense ; its reactive side is working in better accord with the 
evolutionary function of the emotion, — to intensify action in 
a needed direction. In fact, affective processes of indigna- 
tion, resentment and irascible feelings which are not called 
anger in the popular sense, from the scientific side should 
be considered a part of the anger consciousness. They have 
the feeling fore-stage of humiliation and an intellectual re- 
action ; the residuum of the affective process has every mark 
of that victorious satisfaction, which is typical of anger. 
Such tenuous emotions are reported to have far reaching 
results in mental behavior and personal development. One 
subject, resentful at an implication against the value of his 
work, considers that it stimulated him to increased deter- 
mined action and intensified endeavor for several months in 
order to show the offender he was wrong. A., resentful of 
X.'s adverse suggestion, put in three days of severe intellec- 
tual labor to prove his point. E. observes that a humilia- 
tion and mild resentment was a keen stimulus to his ambi- 
tion. His ambitious behavior, he considers was accompan- 
ied by increased friendliness toward the offender. The 
question was privately put to a number of persons as to the 
effects of resentment on some of their ambitions in the past. 
Every person who was asked, after a careful recall, was 
able to find one and some times several instances of import- 
ant results of anger of this kind. Some persons from early 
childhood have habitually reacted to little resentments to 
beat the offender in an ambitious way. One person with 
defective eyes early became sensitive about it. Any impli- 
cation against his defect was always reacted to, he says, by 
saying to himself, "I will show you I can do more with poor 
eyes than you can with good ones, and you will be sorry 
some day." M. 28 — "Resentful because the parents of a 
lady to whom I was paying attention did not approve of me, 
I determined to make so much of myself that they would be 
sorry. It was one of the main incentives to my entering on 



EDUCATIONAL FUNCTION 87 

a career. With this aim I went to the University ; I worked 
hard with success. Many times during the year I would 
recall the incident and would resolve again and again to 
show them some day. For twcryears this idea was pretty 
constantly in my mind. In the course of four years I now 
take keen satisfaction in recalling that I have partly accom- 
plished my purpose." M. 25. — "Four years ago a friend 
whom I admire much, told me that I would never make a 
scientist. I have resented it ever since and have laid plans 
to show him, which I have partly carried out. Every once 
in a while I recall his statement in connection with my work. 
It spurs me on. I imagine myself sending him a copy of my 
scientific problem on which I am working." M. 34. — "In 
my sophomore year in college, I failed to be elected presi- 
dent of our literary society. I became resentful against the 
one who beat me in the election. This person was ambi- 
tious in college contests. I now laid plans to beat him. I 
went into an oratorical contest first with the sole aim of sur- 
passing him. I did not care about the others. I am cer- 
tain that I would never have gone into this contest and 
others if it had not been for a deep set resentment developed 
against him. I recall yet how in practicing and writing in 
contests during the two years of my college work my aim 
principally was to surpass this person. We were good 
friends all the time." 

Such tenuous resentments which persist for years, it may 
be, against people with whom one is on friendly terms, and 
which are accompanied by a rather sudden rise in the curve 
of personal growth, are evidently an essential part of the 
anger consciousness. Smaller achievements of individual 
worth are often reported to be the direct result of a healthy 
sort of reaction from resentment. It is entirely probable 
that most persons, especially those of irascible disposition, 
could point to sudden spurts in their own personal develop- 
ment and achievement, which were motivated by anger 



88 PSYCHOLOGY AND PEDAGOGY OF ANGER 

which never reached the stage of intense excitability or from 
the residuum of exciting anger which disappeared unsuc- 
cessfully. Freud (9) has taken the view that much of biog- 
raphy should be rewritten to include the part thajb sexual 
motives, which have been sublimated, play in personal am- 
bitions. Evidently anger cannot be neglected by one- who 
seeks for motives of personal growth whether biographer or 
educator. 

A too soft pedagogy which would heal over too soon the 
injury to self- feelings, has its disadvantages. Encourage- 
ment at times by superficial means may cut off a good 
healthy angry reaction which may be needed. In fact a little 
lowered self-feeling with an irascible response is a good 
thing and it may be a signal for "hands off," or a little skill- 
ful and judicious suggestion. It is frequently observed by 
the subjects studied that anger at self intensifies a lagging 
willed action and breaks up interferring habits. A quota- 
tion from B. will illustrate. "I turned the anger inward and 
vituperated against myself for being such a lazy man. The 
emotion of the moment was relieved and I feel now like get- 
ting down to work at the stuff and getting it out of the way." 
Some subjects work at their very best when mildly angry. 
Attention and association processes are intensified to the 
point that real difficulties disappear. Anger in the exciting 
stage and at a situation too remote from the problem at 
hand, interferes with mental work. Bryan and Harter 
(3) in their study of skill in telegraphy, found that the 
skillful operator may work best when angry, but the inex- 
perienced worker is less efficient. Michael Angelo is said 
to have worked at his best in a state of irascible temper. 
The mass of mankind are sluggish and need a hearty resent- 
ment as a stimulant. If the circumstances are too soft and 
easy, the best which is in a man may be dormant; there is 
no tonic to a strong nature capable of bearing it like anger. 



EDUCATIONAL FUNCTION 89 

Many a good intellect has lacked the good powers of re- 
sentment necessary for the most efficient work. The boy 
who has not the capacity for anger should be deliberately 
taught it by some means. Gothe, who was a rather keen 
observer of human nature, said, "With most of us the re- 
quisite intensity of passion is not forth-coming without an 
element of resentment, and common sense and careful ob- 
servation will I believe confirm the opinion that few people 
who amount to anything are without a good capacity for 
hostile feelings upon which they draw freely when they need 
it." 

Need of E-rpression.The second condition for the expres- 
sion of anger is that in which reaction is an end in itself. It 
may be said that while on the one hand from a genetic and 
utilitarian point of view the function of anger is to do work, 
to aid in behavior, where increased willed action is needed; 
on the other, the mere expressional side in connection with 
feeling and impulse assumes an important role in every emo- 
tion. In fact with intense and exciting anger, utility may be 
ignored and actually thwarted, volitional action is exerted 
contrary to objective needs. 

There is much in the expression of anger in both the sub- 
jective and objective reaction to the emotion whose impul- 
sive aim is merely to release unpleasant feeling tension, to 
clear the mental atmosphere, so to speak. A brief resume 
of the reactive consciousness to anger will illustrate. First 
on the feeling side there occurs a mental situation accom- 
panied by a tendency to expression in order to remove or 
modify the situation. Irritation may be relieved or turned 
into pleasantness by the reaction. Lowered self-feeling may 
be restored with extra compensation in pleasurable feelings 
of victory, if the reaction has been successful. Second, the 
expression of anger involves restraint, the cruder unsocial 
tendencies are controlled and others are substituted of a 
less objectionable and offensive nature. By both objective 



90 PSYCHOLOGY AND PEDAGOGY OF ANGER 

and subjective reactions, devices of disguise, transfer and 
modification of the unsocial pugnacious tendencies may 
allow the restraint to be released and the emotive tendency 
fully satisfied, in which a feeling of pleasantness follows. 
Third, the reaction which has been fully satisfactory from 
the feeling side, is followed by a partial or complete immun- 
ity against the recurrence of the anger from the same mental 
situation, as the successful reaction has removed the mental 
situation from which the emotion arose. 

Anger from the point of view stated above, touches upon 
the second educational aim. So large a part of the reactive 
consciousness to anger is motivated to find a successful sur- 
rogate for cruder and unsocial tendencies which are objec- 
tional, that this side of anger expression is educationally im- 
portant. It is a desirable personal equipment to have strong 
potentialities of anger. However there should be a men- 
tality which is versatile and active enough by training and 
habit to react successfully to the emotion, in the first place 
to use such reservoirs of energy for work, and second, to 
react satisfactorily from the feeling-side, where the instinc- 
tive tendencies are restrained, and break up morbid and un- 
pleasant mental tension which may be an inference. 

A good angry outburst at times may be a good thing, but 
most frequently some sort of surrogate is more satisfactory. 
Habits of witticism, refined joking, a little good-natured play 
and teasing within the limits of propriety serves a worthy 
end for mental hygiene, and often leaves a basis for good 
will and a friendship which would otherwise be in danger. 
The habit of suddenly breaking up an angry tension by a 
good thrust of wit or joke would be a good one to inculcate 
with the irascibly inclined. Many persons suffer in feelings 
and lack of good friendship because they have never learned 
to be good mental sparrers and to relieve their emotions by 
socially appropriate reaction rather than by a method of re- 
pression which is cheaper at the moment but more expensive 



EDUCATIONAL FUNCTION 91 

in the end. Their anger is too absorbing and serious. It 
lacks the necessary flexibility, their emotions are too near the 
instinctive level and when the instinctive tendencies are re- 
strained they lack mental habits of purging their feelings in 
a satisfactory way, consequently suppression is resorted to 
as a self-defense. 

Anger and Instruction. As Terman (20) has pointed 
out, the emotions employed in the act of instruction need a 
systematic investigation. The emotions brought into play 
in school control, as incentive to work, emotional reactions 
which retard, and those which accelerate learning and effi- 
cient work in classes, these are little known scientifically. 

Anger, or, perhaps, better potentialities of anger in both 
teacher and pupils, is impulsively used in the role of teach- 
ing. Skill in using this emotion aright is part of the teach- 
er's stock in trade. Pugnacity in the form of rivalry is a 
common device. 

Individual Differences. First, there is the problem of 
individual differences in the emotional life of students ; and 
the teacher, too, for that matter. With some, the dominant 
emotion is fear and anxiety. The material of the present 
study shows a wide variation in the type and character of 
emotional reactions of the subjects studied in which anger 
is one of the most frequently occurring emotions. This dif- 
ference is illustrated by the following summary from three 
subjects : With J., anger predominates over fear ; he knows 
but little of the latter emotion. Anger usually occurs from 
a fore-period of lowered self-feeling, the feeling intensity of 
the fore-period is not strong. The reactive stage of the 
anger does not reach a high degree of excitement. With 
him, anger usually disappears into indifference and un- 
pleasantness, leaving tendencies of passive dislike. He ob- 
served no cases of anger at injustice or unfairness except 
when the latter sentiments referred to himself. His anger 
for the most part is an unsuccessful experience and is un- 



92 PSYCHOLOGY AND PEDAGOGY OP ANGER 

pleasant. He consequently tries to avoid getting angry and 
has relatively few emotions. The after-period of his anger 
tends to be a little morbid, lacking any strongly marked dis- 
position which is the source of tendencies to do more work. 
Subject G. has anger as a dominant emotion over fear. He 
scarcely knows anger which arises from a fore-period of 
humiliation except anger at himself when he has been in- 
efficient. He does not hold resentments against persons but 
against situations and principles. Anger is usually unpleas- 
ant except a mild after-period of relief. With him, anger is 
a means of throwing off superfluous feelings of irritation 
and serves but little the purpose of work, except to increase 
volitional action for the moment. His anger often refers to 
himself. Anger at unfairness tends to refer to the principle 
rather than to the person. The emotion occurs more fre- 
quently when he is unwell. It is rather slow to appear, by 
a gradual accumulation, till the point of anger is reached; 
the emotion does not attain a high degree of excitement. 
With subject C. the character and type of anger reaction is 
in marked contrast to the two subjects mentioned above. He 
knows but little of fear except in extreme situations. ( His 
anger nearly all springs from a fore-period of humiliation 
and is often intense in its most active stage. For a time 
during the most intense stage of the emotion, he almost 
loses the sense of justice; but as the emotion begins to die 
down, he has a habit of excusing the offender and looking at 
his side of the question. His anger is frequently followed 
by pity, remorse, shame and fear. The emotion is both 
pleasant and unpleasant. The disappearance is usually un- 
pleasant and leaves a wealth of affective tendencies and 
mental attitudes which are later a source of both pleasant 
and unpleasant feelings. Anger is one of the greatest stim- 
uli he has to do work. He will work for days preparing 
some subject in which he has had opposition that excited 
his resentment in order to even up with the offender, and 



EDUCATIONAL FUNCTION 93 

takes extreme delight in making his point. His tendency 
to anger is greater when feeling well pleased with himself. 
The residuum of his emotion involves attitudes of determi- 
nation and idealization which plays an important role in his 
ambition in general. 

The description above will suffice, to show the problem 
in individual differences in emotional life. With some sub- 
jects fear is the ruling passion. Subjects A. and B. have 
almost an even proportion of fear and anger during the per- 
iod of observation. However these instances represent 
adult persons. How far the habitual emotional reactions 
are determined by training and instruction, is an important 
question. It is highly probable that the character of train- 
ing in childhood and early adolescence plays a leading part. 
Subject C. above was an only child and took considerable 
license, almost getting beyond the control of his parents at 
an early age. J. reports that at early adolescense, anger 
was much more frequent and intense than at present. He 
believes that an early philosophical notion that intelligence 
should dominate the emotions, had an influence in establish- 
ing his present emotional habits. G. was early taught that 
it was sinful to get angry, an idea which he accepted at the 
time. His anger rarely refers to persons but vents on ob- 
jects, principles and situations involved. He has relatively 
few emotions of anger. He believes that his early religious 
training was of importance in moulding the habitual reac- 
tions which he now assumes when angry. Such material 
as we have makes it entirely probable that a large part of the 
habtual mental reactions assumed in anger is the result of 
training. It may be said further that when instruction in- 
volves affairs of emotional life, individual difference become 
a still more pressing problem than when intelligence is the 
criterion. 

Other inferences of the role of anger in the act of instruc- 
tion are suggested from the present study. If the teacher 



94 PSYCHOLOGY AND PEDAGOGY OF ANGER 

himself does not possess the ability of well defined resent- 
ment against an infringement of fairness, advantage of this 
defect may be taken by the alert pupil unless there is com- 
pensation for it in another drection as by the principle of 
co-operation, by love or pride appealed to. Cooley however 
puts the matter a little too strongly when he says, "No teach- 
er can maintain discipline unless his scholars feel that in 
some manner he will resent a breach of it." (Human Na- 
ture and the Social Order, Page 244.) The method of 
school control itself refers to some extent to the individual 
emotional life of the teacher, as well as pupil. 

When anger enters into the role of discipline, of the 
three types already discussed, that which springs from the 
sentiment of justice is most efficient in instruction. Anger 
which arises from irritable feelings, from its nature be- 
comes a dangerous emotion to be used in discipline. Emo- 
tion of this type develops by a cumulative process till the 
point of anger has been reached. It too readily ignores 
justice and is easily transferred from the real offender and 
may finally break out against an innocent party who may 
have unwittingly touched off the feelings which have been 
accumulated by previous stimuli, consequently anger of this 
type which is so frequently displayed in school rooms usu- 
ally defeats the ends of discipline. Anger with a fore-per- 
iod of lowered self-feeling because of the personal element 
entering into this type of anger and the tendency to ignore 
justice can evidently be resorted to but sparingly in school 
control unless it also involves the sense of justice. 

Another point the teacher has to take into account is that 
from his position, if he is held in respect, the anger he excites 
in the student will usually be preceded by humiliation and, if 
he has been unfair, it will be intensified by the sense of of- 
fended fairness. Anger of this type is the one most fre- 
quently followed by an emotional disposition against the of- 
fender. It is the residuum of unsuccessfully expressed 



EDUCATIONAL FUNCTION 95 

anger of this type which becomes a disturbing element in 
school control with the student who is irascibly inclined. 
The wise teacher who understands the individual emotional 
life of the pupil and the nature of the after-period of anger, 
will skillfully remove the morbid residuum and ally the re- 
sentful pupil on his side. Dislike following anger, is skill- 
fully removed, will frequently increase the friendship of the 
offender more than before the offense. This principle of 
compensation in the after-period is thus to be utilized in dis- 
cipline. It may be a good plan deliberately to bring a 
moody pupil to the point of anger and let him vent his 
wrath. Any punishment in discipline has the possibilities 
of being dangerous to school control, especially with the 
student of pugnacious disposition, if the justice of the pun- 
ishment cannot be recognized by the offending pupil. Evi- 
dently a mistake in control is not to recognize the individual 
differences in emotional life and to attempt to use the disci- 
pline of fear with an irascible boy who knows no fear. 
Anger, disappearing unsuccessfully, may leave a morbid res- 
iduum which completely disqualifies the student for efficient 
learning, consequently when it exists, it is the business of the 
educator to remove the morbidity, transform it into 
work or to have the pupil transferred ; for it may be as ser- 
ious a hindrance to learning as adenoids or defective sense 
organs. 

There is every reason to believe that a large part of the 
mental reactions to anger is individually acquired habits, 
consequently successful and satisfactory reactions are a mat- 
ter of training. Potentialities of anger may actually be 
taught indirectly by building up the sentiments and mental 
disposition from which anger arises. Whatever will in- 
crease ideals and new desires, achievements in school which 
allow a better opinion of self and build up the sentiment of 
self -regard, of fairness and justice, are at work at the very 
root of anger consciousness. The study of the mental situ- 



g6 PSYCHOLOGY AND PEDAGOGY OP ANGER 

ation from which anger arises allows every reason to believe 
that when there is a lack of potentialities to anger, it may be 
built up in this indirect manner. The student who lacks 
good healthy resentment when the proper stimulus is at 
hand evidently is weak in the sentiment of self-regard, de- 
sire to achieve, or sense of fairness. 

Whatever exercises will excite the pugnacious instinct, 
if done satisfactorily may involve a training in emotional 
habits. Habits of good fighting in work and play, the give 
and take in debate, class discussion, the witty retort, boxing, 
the team games if carried on aright, afford good exercise 
for the emotions. To acquire good habits of behavior when 
under fire, to fight clean and to the finishing point, to take 
defeat in a sportsman-like manner, are valuable acquisitions 
educationally whether they are acquired in athletics or the 
rivalry of intellectual work. On the other hand, athletics 
and mental contests may be carried on under conditions of 
emotional reaction, which defeat the aim of healthy emotion- 
al habits and consequently lack their better educational sig- 
nificance. 



BIBLIOGRAPHY 






BIBLIOGRAPHY 

i. Ach, N. Ueber die Willenstatigkeit und das Denken. 
Eine Experimentelle Undersuchung mit einem Anhang: 
Ueber das Hippsche Chronoskop. Gottingen. Vanden- 
hoech and Ruprecht. 1905. 

2. Bain, Alexander. The emotion and the Will. Third 
Edition. London. Longman. 1875. 

3. Bryan, W. D. and Harter N. Studies in the Physiol- 
ogy and Psychology of the Telegraphic Language. Psychol- 
ogical Review, Vol. 4: 27-58. 

4. Cooley, C. H. Human Nature and the Social Order. 
C. Scribner's Sons. 1902. 

5. Dewey, John. Psychology. New York. American 
Book Company. 1890. 

6. Dewey, John. The Theory of Emotions. Psycholo- 
gical Review. II. pp. 13-32. 

7. Fere, C. L'anlithese danse' expression des emotions. 
Rev. Philos. 1896. XLII, 498-501. 

8. Freud, S. Der Witz und seine Beziehung zum Un- 
beiL'iissten. Leipzig und Wien F. Deuticke. 1905. pp. 
205. 

9. Freud, S. Drei Abhandlungen zur Sexualtheorie. 
Wien. Deuticke. 1910. 

10. Hall, G. Stanley. Adolescence. D. Appleton and 
Co. 1909. 

11. Hall, G. Stanley. A Study of Anger. American 
Journal of Psychology. Vol. 10. pp. 516-591. 

12. Irons, David. Psychology of Ethics. Edinburgh. 
Blackwood and Sons, 1903. 

13. James, W. Principles of Psychology. Henry Holt 
and Co. 1896. 

14. KulpE, O. Grundis der Psychologic. Leipzig 
Engelmann. 1893. p. 478. 

99 



IOO PSYCHOLOGY AND PEDAGOGY OF ANGER 

15. McDougau,, W. An Introduction to Social Psychol- 
ogy. Seventh Edition. London. B. Luce. 1913. 

16. Ribot, Th. A. The Psychology of the Emotions. 
London. Walter Scott Ltd., Paternoster Square. 1897. 

17. Stanley, H. M. Studies in the Evolutionary Psy- 
chology of Feelings.. .Macmillan. 1899. 

18. Steinmetz, S. R. Ethnolgishe Studien zur ersten 
Entwicklung der Strafe nebst einer P sycholo gischen Ab- 
handlung Uber Grausamkeit und Rachsucht. Vol. 2. Ley- 
den. 1905. 

19. Titchener, E. B. Outlines of Psychology. Mac- 
millan. 1906. 

20. Terman, L. The Teacher's Health, A Study in the 
Hygiene of an Occupation. Houghton Mifflin Company. 

1913- 

21. Wundt, W. Outlines of Psychology. Translated 

by C. H. Judd. Third Edition. Stechert. 1907. 

22. Wundt, W. Human and Animal Psychology. 
Translated by J. F. Creighton and E. B. Titchener. Mac- 
millan. 1896. 



INDEX 



INDEX 

Ach: On study of will, 6. 

Anger : On voluntary control of, 7 ; introspection of, 7, 12- 
13; function of, 8, 68; mental situation giving rise to, 
ch. 1; fore-period of, ch. 1; referring to persons, 15, 16, 
26; referring to objects; referring to self, 22-23; 
delayed disappearance of, 23-25 ; without immediate 
fore-period, 25-27; behavior of consciousness during, 
ch. 11, 53 ; vocal expression of, 36-38 ; attributive reaction 
to, 33-46; contrary reaction to, 46-50; indifferent re- 
action to, 50; disappearance of, ch. in, 60-62, conscious 
after-effects of, ch. iv, 74; classification of, 75, yj) 
types of, 77-79; education of, ch. v; at servants and 
children, 15; in relation to justice, 22, 83, 16; after 
period of, 74, ch. iv ; control of, 53, 58, 59; in school 
control, 91-94. 

Aristotle: On education of emotions, 1. 

Attention : Change of in disappearance of anger, 58. 

Attitude : Reaction to anger, 44-46, 58, 70. 

Attributive Reaction: In expression of anger, 32. 

Bain: On introspective view of anger, 12. 

Behavior : Importance in study of emotions, 2, 7. 

Bergson : Concerning anger and society, 83. 

Bryan and Harter : Effects of anger during practice, 88. 

Dewey, John: On relation of instinct and emotions, 12; 
concerning the function of anger, 83. 

Emotion : Function of, 5, 85-88 ; introspection of, 1 ; import- 



ance of structure of, i ; method of study of, 6 ; factors 
in development of, n ; initial steps of, 15. 

Feelings : Irritable feelings in development of anger, 13, 
14-15. See pleasantness and unpleasantness. 

Fere: Concerning anger with paranoices, 12. 

Freud : On sex as a motive in conduct, 88 ; on theory of wit, 
39-40. • 

Function: Referring to anger, 8, 68, J2, ch. v. 

Gothe : On function of resentment, 89. 

Gossip : And anger, 39, 42, 56, 59, 72. 

Hall : Concerning education of anger, 83 ; on education of 
emotions, 84. 

Habits : And expression of anger, 95. 

Hate : Development from anger, 72. 

Individual Differences : In emotional behavior, 59, 75, 91-94. 

Instructnon: And anger, 91-93. 

Introspection: Difficulty of with emotions, 1. 

Imagination: A factor in control and expression of anger, 
37, 62, 85 ; invective, 36-38. 

Imagery: Visual and motor in expression of anger, 33-35. 

Irony: A means of reaction to anger, 36-42. 

Irons, David: Appearance of anger, 12; behavior of con- 
sciousness during anger, 31. 

James, William : On function of anger, 33, 84. 

Joy: Following anger, 69, 73-74. 

Justice: Facilitates development of anger, 16; ignoring of 
when angry, 22, 83. 

Kiilpe : Concerning voluntary action and emotions, 12. 

Make-believe: In expression of anger, 39, 62. 

Magnan: Concerning anger in paranoices, 12. 



McDougall: On genetic view of origin of anger, n. 

Pity : Following anger, 65, 66. 

Pedagogy : Danger of too soft, 88. 

Play: A means of expression of anger, 35-36. 

Pleasantness : A condition of disappearance of anger, 60, 

53. 55» 57> 59: ^ after-period of anger, 67, 73. 
Ribot: On anger and justice, 83. 
Sarcasm : In expression of anger, 38, 41. 
Self : Imaginary exhaltation of, 43-44. 
Sentiment of Self Regard: Fore-period of anger, 20-21. 
Steinmetz: On danger with primative people, 12. 
Shame: Following anger, 17, 66. 
Sublimation : In expression of anger, 83-92. 
Swearing: In expression of emotions, 37. 
Titchener: On factors in development of emotions, 11. 
Unpleasantness : During anger, 54, 60, 74. 
Witticism : In expression of anger, 39-42, 58. 
Wundt: Concerning voluntary action, 5, 84. 



